Borussia Dortmund coach Edin Terzic believes “anything is possible” as his team aims to shock Real Madrid in Saturday’s Champions League final at London’s Wembley Stadium. The star-studded Spanish giants are hot favorites to be crowned European champions for the 15th time, and sixth time in the last 11 seasons, against a Dortmund side who overcame the odds just to reach the English capital. Real Madrid have lost just twice in 54 games across all competitions this season, winning the La Liga title by 10 points and beating Barcelona 4-1 to win the Spanish Super Cup along the way.
However, the team had to work hard again to reach what coach Carlo Ancelotti described as the “biggest game of any season” in the Champions League.
Ancelotti’s men withstood a barrage from defending champions Manchester City and won the quarter-final match on penalties, before another legendary comeback at the Santiago Bernabeu to defeat Bayern Munich in the semi-finals.
“We never stop believing, regardless of the circumstances”, said Luka Modric, who, together with Nacho, Dani Carvajal and Toni Kroos, in the last game of his career at the club, can win the European Cup for the sixth time, equaling the record . as a player.
“We always believed, we kept believing, we kept pushing, fighting until the end. In the end, we managed to find a way to beat our opponents.
“A lot of people say there’s such a thing as luck, but when it happens so many times, I guess it’s not just luck.”
Real Madrid’s Bellingham shaped by Dortmund
Jude Bellingham’s career exemplifies the scale of the task facing Dortmund.
Plucked from Premier League side Birmingham as a teenager, he was molded and developed by the German giants before being signed by Real Madrid for a transfer fee in excess of 100 million euros ($109 million) 12 months ago.
Without him, Dortmund struggled internally this season, finishing fifth in the Bundesliga, 27 points behind Bayer Leverkusen.
Still, Terzic’s men saved their best for the Champions League stage, reaching the final for the third time in the club’s history and the first since they lost at Wembley to Bayern Munich 11 years ago.
Dortmund topped the group of death with Paris Saint-Germain, AC Milan and Newcastle.
PSV Eindhoven and Atlético Madrid were then eliminated, before a heroic defensive display denied PSG entry into both legs of the semi-finals.
“They are the favorites but we don’t care, we haven’t been the favorites against Atlético or against PSG,” said Terzic.
“But if we are brave and we are not here to see Real Madrid lift the trophy, if we are here to give them a game, then we have an opportunity.”
In stark contrast to Real Madrid’s nickname as kings of the competition, Dortmund’s only previous Champions League success came in 1997.
It is estimated that more than 100,000 fans of the German giants traveled to London, despite the club only receiving 30,000 tickets.
Marco Reus is one of only two Dortmund players to have been part of the team that lost to Bayern at Wembley 11 years ago, and he is dreaming of a perfect end to his time at the club.
Saturday will be the 429th and final game of Reus’ Dortmund career, which could have a fairytale ending.
“I would say there is nothing better than playing the last game in a Champions League final and winning it,” said Reus, who turned 35 on Friday.
“Now the aim is to win the trophy because we can’t imagine what things will be like the next day in Dortmund.”
UEFA hopes the focus will be on the key players taking to the field full-time to ensure their decision to return to Wembley for a major final is not questioned.
Three years ago, the Euro 2020 final was marked by violence, when fans without tickets broke through the stadium doors to gain entry.
The English Football Association has invested £5 million ($6 million) in improving security and infrastructure at Wembley, which will also host the Euro 2028 final.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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