B Dortmund 0 – 2 R Madrid
Real Madrid were crowned champions of Europe for a 15th time at Wembley, with second-half goals from Dani Carvajal and Vinicius Jr seeing off a brave Borussia Dortmund for a 2-0 Champions League final victory.
The German side hit a post and created two more big chances in the first half as they threatened a big upset but Real have a unique relationship with this competition and, with an improved display after the interval, they finally came to life.
Toni Kroos – in his final game for the club – set up the opener with a corner for Carvajal to head home with 16 minutes to play, while England’s Jude Bellingham rolled in Vinicius Jr to punish a stretched Dortmund side soon after.
Niclas Fullkrug, who had struck the inside of an upright earlier in the game when Dortmund were breaking through the Real backline at will, thought he’d set up a big finish with a powerful header but was flagged offside and Dortmund’s hopes of an unlikely comeback all but ended there.
Real, the Kings of Europe, have been crowned again.
For the first time, it is with an unbeaten European campaign. They have needed four comebacks along the way, including their last-gasp turnaround against Bayern Munich in the semi-finals and a penalty shootout victory over last season’s winners Manchester City in the quarter-finals, but the Spanish champions wouldn’t be denied.
For Carvajal, Kroos and team-mates Nacho and Luka Modric it is a remarkable sixth Champions League win with Real Madrid. Boss Carlo Ancelotti has now won the coveted prize five times as a head coach.
The odds were always stacked against Dortmund. They had beaten them against Atletico Madrid and Paris St-Germain on the way to the final but missed moments in the first half came back to cost them here. Those chances may well have played on their minds as they stood in front of their supporters who had urged them on so loudly throughout.
More to follow…
When does the 2024/25 Premier League season start?
The 2023/24 season has reached its conclusion but planning has already started for the new campaign.
Several Premier League sides have confirmed pre-season friendlies ahead of the 2024/25 term, which kicks off on the weekend of August 17/18, while others have given fresh kits an early airing.
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