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Edin Terzic’s men left Wembley wondering how they lost, which is pretty much the norm for Los Blancos’ opponents in Europe’s premier club competition.
As chance after chance went begging for Borussia Dortmund in Saturday’s Champions League decider at Wembley Stadium, there was a growing sense that this was Real Madrid’s final.
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01:00 - 02.06.2024
Real Madrid show Borussia Dortmund who is boss as late Carvajal and Vinicius goals deliver Champions League glory
Real Madrid made it a record-extending 15th European title as they survived an early onslaught from Borussia Dortmund to win their 15th Champions League title.
That line of thinking is typical for run-of-the-mill matches, not to mention one involving Los Blancos in their favourite competition.
Carlo Ancelotti’s men went into the 2024 decider keen to claim the club’s 15 European Cup crown and their sixth since 2014. Ancelotti was in situ when the Spanish giants ended a prolonged wait for La Decima — the club's 10th European success — and the LaLiga side have dominated in this competition since that Lisbon triumph over Atletico Madrid.
They had gone 12 years without lifting the Big Ears, but have now triumphed six times in 11 finals, with Dortmund the dominant side’s latest victim.
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Borussia Dortmund vs Real Madrid
Observers expected Ancelotti’s men to dominate on Saturday, with Dortmund making the most of their attacking transitions against the Spanish side.
While that was true to an extent, Edin Terzic’s side were far more threatening on the counterattack than was expected, making the most of Karim Adeyemi’s rapidity and Real Madrid’s flawed structure out of possession.
However, Adeyemi’s execution was twice sub-optimal in a seven-minute period that saw the Germany international elect to round the returning Thibaut Courtois in minute 21 and shoot from an acute angle seven minutes later.
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He could have backed himself to beat the Belgian goalkeeper with a first-time shot for the first and taken a better touch in the lead-up to the second, but it was not to be.
Adeyemi’s moments were far from Dortmund’s only first-half chances that went awry. Julian Brandt had dragged a shot wide before his Germany teammate’s pair of failed attempts. Niclas Fullkrug hit the post in minute 22 and Marcel Sabitzer forced Courtois into a fine stop with an effort from 20 yards.
The shot count at the interlude was 8-2 in Dortmund’s favour and the Expected Goals (xG) was 1.68-0.09. Los Blancos were on the ropes.
"Dortmund were a very uncomfortable opponent," Ancelotti admitted afterwards.
"In football, when you don't take your chances, the risk of conceding or losing the lead is very high. They played better than us, but they left us with options, with the game even, and in the second half, when we played better and with more balance, we won the game.”
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23:17 - 01.06.2024
Carlo Ancelotti gives 3 reasons why Real Madrid beat Dortmund to win 15th UCL title
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti highlighted the reason Los Blancos are so successful in the Champions League.
Real Madrid could not have played any worse than the opening half, and the game was won following two late second-half goals from Daniel Carvajal and Vinicius Junior.
The outcome was probably inevitable, but this one was tough to take even for Dortmund’s unfortunate standards.
BVB returned to Wembley 11 years after Arjen Robben’s 89th-minute Bayern Munich winner prevented a second Champions League success for the club from North Rhine-Westphalia, and this year’s defeat was 12 months removed from blowing last season’s Bundesliga title win on the final day.
The modus operandi was perfect, but Dortmund’s finishing let them down. Los Blancos capitalised on BVB’s below-par execution as they are wont to do, continuing the Spanish side’s pattern of winning important games despite failing to impress.
“We played a great game and maybe we deserved a bit more. Especially in the first half you had the feeling that we had them figured out,” said Terzic after the biting loss. “We played a really, really good game. We showed that we believe in ourselves.
“We did so many things right and the only difference is that they had that killer instinct. And then you see the quality they have. That's why they are deservedly the champions again.”
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Moral victories do Dortmund no good. They went to Wembley keen to end the season positively after a disappointing domestic campaign jarred with an unforeseen run to the Champions League final.
Instead, they exited empty-handed after becoming the latest ones to feel the inevitability of Real Madrid on the continent.
In a sense, Los Blancos’ continental success is pleasing for the old-school supporter. With modern football guided by control-crazy managers, Ancelotti’s Real have simply stayed the same to disrupt comprehensively constructed plans.
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The Italian’s two Champions League triumphs in three years take him to five altogether, a tally outdoing every manager in the competition’s history. And he and they are by no means done yet.
To say Real are lucky would be unfairly dismissive of a team defeated by one opponent all season and underplaying Ancelotti’s influence in dealing with long-term injuries to Courtois, Eder Militao and David Alaba.
Kylian Mbappe is anticipated to be added to the Los Blancos attack imminently, possibly striking fear into any Spanish and European opposition keen to supplant the 15-time continental champions.
This is Real Madrid’s world and we are just living in it.
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