Real Madrid withstood a Borussia Dortmund barrage to win the Champions League for the 15th time, with Dani Carvajal and Vinicius Junior scoring late in a 2-0 victory at Wembley on Saturday. Right-back Carvajal headed in Toni Kroos’ 74th-minute corner before Vinicius fired into the far corner to extend the Spanish giants’ record as the most successful club in Champions League history. Real Madrid have won the last nine European Champion Clubs’ Cup finals and have won the competition six times in the last 11 seasons.
However, not for the first time in this series, they had to rely on luck as underdogs Dortmund bitterly regretted not making the most of their first-half chances.
Niclas Fuellkrug hit the post and Karim Adeyemi failed to convert one-on-one with Thibaut Courtois.
Real Madrid, however, always seems to find a place in Europe’s elite competition and has made more history in the English capital. Carvajal, Kroos, Nacho and Luka Modric joined Real legend Paco Gento as the only players to win the European Cup six times.
Carlo Ancelotti also extended his record as the most successful coach in the competition’s history with his fifth title.
A record number of more than 2,500 stewards were at Wembley, with authorities eager to avoid a repeat of the violent scenes that marred the Euro 2020 final three years ago, when fans without tickets stormed the turnstiles. But other questions about the security operation will be raised, as three pitch invaders managed to enter the pitch in the first few minutes of the game, with one of them taking photos alongside Jude Bellingham and Vinicius.
Ancelotti said before the game he felt “like a lion” after an afternoon nap, but his team were caught sleeping for the first 45 minutes as Dortmund dominated to the roar of thousands of travelers from Germany.
Chances wasted by Dortmund
Ancelotti’s decision to call up Courtois for his first Champions League appearance of the season following a serious knee injury paid dividends as the Belgian kept his team in the game.
The best opportunities came from Adeyemi, as Carvajal was unable to contain the German international’s pace. A brilliant pass from Mats Hummels put Adeyemi in front but he took a strong touch under pressure from Courtois and ran wide before his shot was blocked by Carvajal.
Fuellkrug’s robust physique made him a fan favorite in his first season at Dortmund.
The German international striker came closest to opening the scoring before half-time when his Ian Maatsen shot came off the inside of the post. Adeyemi was then denied once again by Courtois from a narrow angle and Fuellkrug was unable to twist his burly frame to retrieve the rebound.
Ancelotti, Nacho and Modric made a point of highlighting on the eve of the game that Real Madrid’s habit of finding a way to surpass their goal in the Champions League was no coincidence.
After once again being lucky in the first half, the Spanish champions recovered in the second half.
Gregor Kobel was finally forced into a save in the 48th minute by Kroos, who came close to marking the last game of his club career with a spectacular free-kick.
Bellingham became a global star during three years at Dortmund before leaving for Madrid 12 months ago for more than 100 million euros ($108 million).
The England international was inches away from biting the hand that fed him as he simply failed to connect with Vinicius’s teasing cross. Real Madrid struck the decisive blow 16 minutes from time when Carvajal rose highest to head in Kroos’ corner.
Kobel briefly kept his team alive with good saves from Eduardo Camavinga and Nacho, while Bellingham’s shot on goal was deflected by Nico Schlotterbeck.
But Bellingham had a moment to savor his return home as his pass helped Vinicius kill off Dortmund despite Kobel latching on to the Brazilian’s powerful shot.
Topics mentioned in this article
This story originally appeared on ndtv.com read the full story
