LONDON: Vinicius Junior scored and sealed a record-extending 15th European Cup for Real Madrid after a 2-0 win against Borussia Dortmund in the final on Saturday.
The Brazil forward doubled Madrid’s lead in the 83rd minute at Wembley Stadium, nine minutes after Dani Carvajal headed the Spanish giant in front.
Victory sealed a record-extending fifth Champions League title for coach Carlo Ancelotti, his third with Madrid.
Meanwhile Carvajal, Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Nacho have won European club soccer’s biggest prize on six occasions to equal the benchmark set by Madrid icon Paco Gento.
Dortmund paid the price for not making the most of its first half dominance when Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois pulled off a series of saves and Niclas Fullkrug hit the post.
Madrid took full advantage after the break.
Carvajal met Kroos’ corner at the near post in the 74th to power a header past Dortmund keeper Gregor Kobel.
Jude Bellingham nearly doubled the lead moments later, but then turned provider when slipping in Vinicius. With just Kobel to beat, the forward fired his shot into the far corner and raced off in celebration.
Rock star Lenny Kravitz got the crowd going before kickoff with a pre-game show that included fireworks and some of his biggest hits like “Are You Gonna Go My Way.”
It was Vinicius who was dancing after his goal effectively killed off Dortmund’s hopes of pulling off one of the biggest Champions League upsets in recent memory.
For a long time, the German side looked capable of halting Madrid after dominating the chances in the first half.
Coach Edin Terzic tactically outmaneuvered Ancelotti in every department, with Madrid’s stars subdued.
Only a combination of Courtois and the frame of the goal kept the scores level at the break after the keeper twice kept Karim Adeyemi from scoring and then watched as Fullkrug’s sliding effort came back off the post.
The break clearly helped Madrid and it slowly took control in the second half.
Carvajal’s goal came straight from the training ground, with the defender heading over from one corner before eventually converting, while Vinicius put the game beyond doubt.
Champions League final: Real Madrid seals 15th European Cup after 2-0 win over Borussia Dortmund
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Champions League final: Real Madrid seals 15th European Cup after 2-0 win over Borussia Dortmund
- Victory sealed a record-extending fifth Champions League title for coach Carlo Ancelotti, his third with Madrid
Real Madrid handed shock home loss as Celta Vigo spring surprise
- Celta jumped from 14th to 10th while the defeat ended Real’s 100 percent home league record this season after six successive wins
MADRID: Real Madrid suffered a shock 2-0 loss and finished with nine men against Celta Vigo in LaLiga on Sunday after Williot Swedberg scored an audacious goal with his heel and a second in stoppage time to leave the hosts four points off leaders Barcelona.
Swedish substitute Swedberg cleverly diverted a cross from Bryan Zaragoza past Thibaut Courtois in the 53rd minute to put Celta ahead and had an easy finish three minutes into added time, going around the goalkeeper to wrap up the points.
Real’s cause was not helped by the 64th minute dismissal of Fran Garcia, who picked up two yellow cards in 60 seconds, but they laid siege to the visitors’ goal for the last 20 minutes as Celta went into a defensive shell to hold onto their advantage.
Real defender Alvaro Carreras was also dismissed for two cautions, his second coming in stoppage time at the end of the game as the home side’s frustrations boiled over.
It was a second clean sheet in 15 league games this season for Celta, whose keeper Ionut Radu made a first-half save from Jude Bellingham’s header and stopped a second-half free-kick whipped in by Kylian Mbappe.
Real stay on 36 points from 16 games as Celta celebrated a first win at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu in 19 years, leaving the Galician club with 19 points.
“With the team they have and their quality, it’s difficult to match them, but we read the game well,” said Celta striker Borja Iglesias. “We had possession, we played in their half, we played a fantastic match.”
Celta jumped from 14th to 10th while the defeat ended Real’s 100 percent home league record this season after six successive wins.
Xabi Alonso’s stuttering Real team have now won only one of their last five league games as they await the midweek arrival of Manchester City in the Champions League.
Earlier on Sunday, Espanyol moved up to fifth as Roberto Fernandez’s first half penalty handed them a 1-0 home win over Rayo Vallecano as both sides finished with 10 men.
Elche’s Rafa Mir scored twice as they ran out 3-0 home winners over struggling Girona, while hosts Valencia and Sevilla remained in the bottom half of the table after a 1-1 draw.
