MADRID • It was another great Champions League night for Keylor Navas at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Like many times before, the goalkeeper left the field with the home faithful chanting his name.
This time, though, his outstanding display helped Real Madrid's opponents, Paris Saint-Germain, salvage a 2-2 draw to clinch top spot in Group A of the Champions League on Tuesday night.
On his former player, who spent five years with the La Liga giants before joining the French side in the summer, Real coach Zinedine Zidane said: "I'm not surprised. He had these types of performances when he played for us. He did his job. He had four or five very good saves but it was for them, unfortunately."
Navas kept PSG in the game despite Karim Benzema's brace giving the hosts a 2-0 lead. It allowed the French champions to hit back, with Kylian Mbappe and substitute Pablo Sarabia scoring in the final nine minutes.
The comeback was doubly galling as Mbappe's tap-in came after a mistake by Navas' successor, Thibaut Courtois. The Belgian has yet to win over the Real fans after a series of high-profile blunders since his £35 million (S$61.5 million) move from Chelsea last season.
His latest howler in letting a cross squirm under his body for Mbappe to follow up into the empty net will be more ammunition for his critics.
Navas, on the other hand, was feted by the crowd and he saluted them as he made his way to the changing room after the game.
On the warm reception, the 32-year-old Costa Rican, who helped Real win three straight Champions League trophies, said: "I'm really thankful. Together, we lived some incredible moments here."
Real went into the game knowing they had qualified for the last 16 following Club Brugge's 1-1 draw at Galatasaray earlier in the day.
So Zidane declared he was satisfied with the "great" performance despite letting a two-goal lead slip, while his counterpart Thomas Tuchel admitted PSG were lucky.
Said the Real coach: "We are not happy with the final result, but we are happy with how we played. You have to be happy with what we have done for 80 minutes."
His positivity was tempered by Eden Hazard's enforced second-half withdrawal owing to a twisted ankle. Zidane admitted he feared the worst after confirming it was "more than just a knock" with the Belgium forward a doubt for the Dec 18 Clasico with Barcelona.
According to Bleacher Report, a fracture has since been ruled out, but more tests have been lined up to determine the extent of the damage.
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