On Wednesday evening in Madrid, it was decided whether Real Madrid or Bayern Munich will join Borussia Dortmund in the men’s Champions League final.
On Tuesday, Dortmund had produced another great European experience for PSG. Dortmund is the season’s sensation in the Champions League, as it is only fifth in its home league and has played its worst season there in nine years.
Dortmund have won the Champions League once when they beat Juventus in the 1997 final. In addition, Dortmund has played in the final in 2013, when they faced Bayern, who won 2–1.
Under the name of the Champions League, Europe’s most prestigious trophy has been played since the 1992–93 season. Since then, Bayern have been in the final six times and won three times (2001, 2013, 2020).
Real Madrid, on the other hand, is the overwhelming ruler of the Champions League or the European Cup that preceded it, with 17 final places and 14 championships, the most recent five of which since spring 2014.
Real dominated
The first leg between Real and Bayern had ended in a 2–2 draw. The second leg started fast from end to end, but after that Real took solid control. In the opening period, the Madrid players won the goal attempts 8–2 and the expected goals 0.71–0.10.
Real got the closest to the goal in the 13th minute, when Bayern’s konkar Manuel Neuer repelled of Vinicius Junior to the post of a sharp and low draft. You could still play loose ball Rodrygobut this unsuccessful move was blocked by Neuer while sitting on the ground.
in the 28th minute Harry Kane sent a nice volley from the edge of the penalty area, but narrowly missed the front post. Kane, 30, has been one of the big talking points of the season. Although Kane has been a superior goalscorer in the European leagues, Bayern may be left without a trophy for the first time in 11 years.
“Has Kane brought the culture of losing from Tottenham to Bayern”, was joked when Leverkusen dominated the Bundesliga.
In the second half, the 38-year-old Neuer announced himself as the number one figure in the match. First, in the 55th minute, Rodrygo guided the ball past the goal from a practically empty goal.
In the 59th minute, Neuer made a handsome save on Rodrygo’s free kick, and in the 60th minute, he made an at least equally spectacular one-handed save on Vinicius’ hard shot from the penalty spot.
Johan started to happen
In the 68th minute, Bayern struck on the counterattack. High speed Alphonso Davies received a long pass to the left wing, drove into the penalty area, deflected the Real goalkeeper by Antonio Rüdiger and fired superbly into the back top corner.
In the 71st minute, Real already celebrated the equalizing goal. The ball bounced through the legs of the Bayern players and into the net on a corner kick, but the shot was quickly disallowed by video review. Real’s captain Nacho Fernandez had clearly pushed Bayern Joshua Kimmich face with both hands.
After that, Bayern defended brilliantly. It already looked like Real Madrid could miss a goal. It would have been only the third time (previously 1976 and 2001) against Bayern in the 88 meetings between the teams throughout history.
But Real Madrid wouldn’t be Real Madrid – the most dominant club in European competition – if the game hadn’t turned.
In the 88th minute, Neuer crumbled. He parried Vinicius’s light long-range thrust directly in front of him, from which Joselu uploaded it online.
Just when the second half turned to extra time, Real’s rampage in Bayern’s penalty area ended with Joselu’s guidance from five meters: 2–1. The unlikely giver of the button focus was the topper Rüdiger. At first, the situation was flagged as an offside, but a video review showed that there was no offside in the situation.
Joselu was the unlikely decider of the match. He came on as a substitute in the 81st minute. He has scored nine league goals and five goals in the Champions League for Real this season.
Due to video reviews and goal celebrations, nine minutes of extra time were given in the match, which stretched to no less than 15 minutes. In extra time, there was another special fight, when in time 90+13. Bayern shot the ball into the goal. Referee Szymon Marciniak however, had already whistled the situation for offside before that, and Real’s players had stopped playing.
What was special about the situation was that in the VAR era, situations are usually looked at until the end just to be sure, and possible offsides can be considered after the situation is over. Therefore, the situation naturally caused outrage in the Bayern camp.
Same magic
For example BBC follow-up was filled with the same, familiar wonder after the match.
– Some new players at Real Madrid, but the same old magic. They never know when to give up and they always seem to find a way to win, reflected the former Real Madrid player Steve McManaman.
– It is exceptional. This stadium is such a magical place, especially on nights like this. You don’t realize how magical it is until you’re here. These things happen to Real Madrid, and they happen all the time, wrote from Madrid Pat Nevin for BBC radio.
– We are not surprised by Real Madrid. They haven’t been great this Champions League season, I think Manchester City should have beaten them. But you can’t argue with history. It is the history of Real Madrid. Something you can expect from them, a ManU legend Paul Scholes amazed.
Wembley final
It was already known that the head coach of Bayern, who played a miserable season in the Bundesliga Thomas Tuchel leave the club. He started in Munich in March 2023. Now it was confirmed that Bayern will be without a major trophy for the first time in 11 years.
Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti can instead celebrate the fifth Champions League victory of his career. Already four (two in Milan, two in Real Madrid) is an all-time record. This year, Real also returned as La Liga champions.
The Champions League final will be played at London’s Wembley Stadium on June 1. Opposite are a big surprise and a team whose place in the final can no longer surprise anyone.
Two great eras also end in the final: Dortmund’s Marco Reus and Real Luka Modric play their clubs last matches at Wembley. Both have represented their clubs for 12 seasons.
And the fact that maybe the best player in the world at the moment, at least the midfielder, Jude Bellingham ends his debut season in a Real Madrid shirt by facing his former club doesn’t reduce the download either.
– They talk about how they won the Champions League for the 14th time and how they want the 15th. They are never satisfied here. The players feel like family and the fans feel like family, Bellingham beamed at his current club.
– at Wembley against Dortmund. It’s weird, I can’t believe it. When I was seven years old in Birmingham, I dreamed of nights like this.