Real Madrid beats city rivals Atletico to win Champions League for 10th time
Real Madrid beats city rivals Atletico to win Champions League for 10th time
Iker Casillas lifts the Champions League trophy after a 4-1 win for Real Madrid over Atletico in Lisbon.
Three quickfire goals in extra time gave Real Madrid a 4-1 win over
city rivals Atletico in Lisbon Saturday to win the European Champions
League for the 10th time.
Diego Godin put Atletico
ahead in the 36th minute and it took an injury time equalizer from
Sergio Ramos to rescue Real and force the extra half hour.
Atletico held out until
the second half of the added time until Gareth Bale headed Real ahead
after superb work by Angel Di Maria.
Marcelo and Cristiano
Ronaldo, with a penalty, his record 17th goal in the Champions League
this season, rubbed salt into the wound for Atletico, who had been
bidding for a La Liga/Champions League double.
Coach Diego Simeone,
unhappy at the added minutes in regulation play, summed up their
frustration as he ran on to the pitch to confront Real's Raphael Varane
after the final goal and had to be restrained by stewards.
It was a sorry end to a
magnificent season for Los Rojiblancos, but ultimately the quality of
Real, epitomized by the world's most expensive player Bale, which
prevailed.
It was the Welshman's 22nd goal of the season and sixth in the Champions League but surely the most important of his career.
"This is what every
footballer dreams of and it doesn't come any bigger than that," the
Welshman told Sky Sports after his side's triumph.
For Real Madrid's Carlo
Ancelotti it was his third Champions League triumph as a coach, equaling
the record of Liverpool's Bob Paisley.
His counterpart Simeone
had gambled on the fitness of his star striker Diego Costa, who has been
hampered by a hamstring injury, but it backfired when the Spanish
international limped off after nine minutes.
He was replaced by
Adrian Lopez but Atletico initially took his departure in its stride,
frustrating Real's attacking menace in a scrappy first half.
It came to life in a
passage of play which first saw Bale poke an effort wide of the post
after running through the Atletico defense.
The Real fans in the
Stadium of Light looked skywards in disbelief but they were soon in
total despair after a mistake by Spanish international goalkeeper Iker
Casillas.
Real failed to clear a
corner which was lifted back into the area and Uruguay's Godin beat the
onrushing Casillas to the ball to score with a flicked header.
Casillas desperately scrambled back to make amends for his error of judgment but could not keep the ball out of the net.
World Player of the Year
Ronaldo had been kept quiet in the first half but was more prominent
after the break, forcing Thibaut Courtois to make a fine save from a
free kick then narrowly failing to connect with a header in front of
goal.
Bale also started to
live up to his price tag, charging through from the right before
scuffing his effort wide, while a combination with Ronaldo saw another
chance to begging.
But with time running
out, Ramos connected perfectly with a Luka Modric corner to add to his
two goals from the semifinal win over reigning champions Bayern Munich
and give his side a precious lifeline, of which it took full advantage.
Real Madrid beats city rivals Atletico to win Champions League for 10th time
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