Real Madrid was crowned kings of Europe for a record-extending 15th time with a 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League final at Wembley on Saturday.
Huge favourites going in to the game, the Spanish side was outplayed for long periods but broke Dortmund’s resistance with late goals from Dani Carvajal and Vinicius Jr.
Veteran right back Carvajal glanced in a header from a Toni Kroos corner in the 74th minute and from that moment Carlo Ancelotti’s side sparked into life.
Vinicius slid home Real’s second in the 83rd minute to silence the yellow-clad Dortmund fans who had created a wall of noise throughout the final.
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It was hard on the German side who missed several good first-half chances, the best of which saw Niclas Fuellkrug hit the post from close range.
It was a performance typical of Real not only this season but for the last few years, as they did almost nothing for an hour but absorbed Dortmund’s punches then showed their clinical touch in front of goal.
The Germans had a dream first half in every aspect other than scoring.
Their first good chance came after 21 minutes when Karim Adeyemi broke the offside trap but went too wide when rounding goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and was smothered.
Then came a flurry of further opportunities as Niclas Fullkrug hit the post and low shots by Julian Brandt and Marcel Sabitzer were saved by Courtois, making only his fifth appearance of an injury-hit season.
Real had barely fired a shot or built a sustained attack but, as so often in big games in recent seasons, it stayed calm and collected, confident that its chance would come and its speed and precision on the counter would make the difference.
RELENTLESS NOISE
Dortmund had been attacking towards its own fans who, revelling in the team’s first Champions League final since 2013 and only its third ever, did their best to reproduce the yellow wall from their Westfalenstadion with relentless noise and unified bouncing that shook the stadium to its foundations.
At the other end, with precious little to get excited about, it felt like another day at the office for the Madrid supporters, who have been gorging at the top table for a decade and have become used to their team absorbing pressure.
Madrid looked livelier from the start in the second half, with Dortmund keeper Gregor Kobel saving a Toni Kroos free kick and Carvajal glancing a header just over.
The German side, however, soon took control again and Courtois was in action to keep out a diving header by Fuellkrug.
To the surprise of nobody in the stadium though, Dortmund paid a heavy price for failing to convert its chances as Madrid scored the opener with a simple goal as Carvajal rose to meet a Kroos corner and power home a header.
The assist was a fitting way for Germany international midfielder Kroos to mark his final game for the club while he Carvajal, Nacho and Luka Modric equalled Real’s Francisco Gento’s record of six titles from their first era of dominance.
Madrid took charge from then on and got the second goal when Dortmund lost the ball on the edge of its own box, Jude Bellingham fed Vinicius Jr in acres of space and the Brazilian fired the ball home.
Dortmund finally found the net three minutes from time but Fullkrug’s header was ruled out for offside and, though their incredible fans continued to sing, it was more importantly the same old song again for champions Real in the European Cup.
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