Real Madrid win 15th Champions League title

• Real Madrid have now won a record 15 Champions League title after beating Borussia Dortmund in Saturday’s final
• While it was a perfect night for Toni Kroos who played his last match at club level, it was heartbreak for Marco Reus who made his final appearance for Borussia Dortmund

Real Madrid are once again European champions after beating Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund in this year’s UEFA Champions League final. It was the Los Blancos 15th Champions League title which they won at Wembley Stadium despite having a torrid first half.

Dortmund’s striker Niclas Fullkrug struck the post while Karim Adeyemi missed two golden opportunities in the opening 45 minutes which could have gone Dortmund’s way. Real got their way into the match in the second period and made their chances count with Dani Carvajal opening the scoring in the 74th minute with a superb header from Toni Kroos’ corner kick before Vinicius Junior sealed the win in the 83rd minute after being put on goal by Jude Bellingham.

Real Madrid players celebrate after winning the UEFA Champions League. Photo/ Sky Sports.

Dortmund saw their final end in disappointment just like the 2013 edition where they suffered defeat against familiar opponents Bayern Munich.

While it was a perfect night for Kroos who played his last match at club level, it was heartbreak for Marco Reus who made his final appearance for Borussia Dortmund.

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has now won five Champions League titles while Nacho Fernandez, Luka Modric, Kroos and Carvajal joined Real Madrid legend Paco Gento as players with six Champions League trophies.

Speaking after last night’s victory, Ancelotti gave his Real Madrid side a 10/10 rating for the 2023/24 season. Apart from the Champions League, the Los Blancos have also won the La Liga and Supercoppa de Espana.

“You need both sacrifice and quality to win Champions League, but this win makes me very satisfied because we never give up and always fight until the end. So I’d rate us as 10 out of 10 this season. This season has been 10/10. My players have been spectacular.” Carlo Ancelotti is quoted by ESPN.

How Real Madrid Beat Borussia Dortmund

Borussia Dortmund came into the UEFA Champions League final as heavy underdogs. After surviving the group of death which also had Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), AC Milan and Newcastle United, Dortmund stunned PSV, Atletico Madrid and PSG in the knockouts.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid showed dominance in their group winning all matches against Union Berlin, Napoli and Braga. Their toughest challenges came in the knockout stages as they had to overcome Leipzig, defending champions Manchester City and German giants Bayern Munich.

This year’s UEFA Champions League final was played at Wembley Stadium in London, the same venue where Dortmund lost the 2013 final to Bayern.

Aiming to triumph this time, Der BVB started the game on a high note with the famous yellow wall backing them from the stands. They came close to scoring early on when Niclas Fullkrug found Julian Brandt with a well taken pass. Unfortunately, Brandt fired wide.

Real Madrid won the Champions League final against Borussia Dortmund. Photo/ The Mirror US.

Mats Hummels’ beautiful pass was then met by Karim Adeyemi who somehow missed one of the biggest chances of the match. Thibaut Courtois, who has missed the majority of the 2023/24 season due to injury, was Real’s hero as he stopped the 22-year-old’s effort from going in.

Dortmund continued to attack and Fullkrug hit the post after finding his way into the box. Courtois then made a brilliant save to deny Adeyemi and Fullkrug in quick succession. Former Bayern Munich player Marcel Sabitzer also saw his well taken strike saved by Courtois in the first half.

Real Madrid came back motivated after the break and quickly started dominating the match, with star players like Vinicius Junior, Rodrygo and Jude Bellingham getting lively.

Kroos saw his effort from free-kick parried away by Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel but his influence in the match couldn’t be denied as he took the corner that was headed home by Carvajal in the 74th minute. Not long after, Vinicius sealed the win firing home with his left foot.