Real Madrid win their 13th UCL title
Zinadine Zidane made a gamechanging substitution!
Substitute Gareth Bale comes on to score the winning goals
His brace hands Real their 3rd straight UCL crown
Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius endures a nightmare in goal
Sergio Ramos earns his 4th UCL title as Real captain
Real Madrid Vs Liverpool
Real Madrid has beaten Liverpool 3-1 in the UCL Final 2018 to win their 13th UCL title which was also their 3rd straight title.
Before beginning with the match analysis, this final has seen one of the strangest goals as well as the most spectacular goals in the history of the UEFA Champions League.
With the attack that both teams possess, the game began at a quick pace with both sides attacking their opposition goals, but there was terrible news for either side after Mohamed Salah and Dani Carvajal were forced off with an injury.
Salah's blow came in the 28th minute when Sergio Ramos was looking to win the ball back took down Salah, pulling his arm in the process. Salah looked fine to continue but just for a couple more minutes after tears came down the eyes of the Egyptian.
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| Mo Salah exited the game early with an injury |
He knew that he couldn't continue further and received moral support from his teammates as well as the opposition players including Cristiano Ronaldo. His involvement in UCL Final made him the first Egyptian player to contest a UCL final but going away in such circumstances was just earthshattering for him.
Just 8 minutes later, Real Madrid fullback Dani Carvajal picked up an injury while attempting to backheel the ball and the Spaniard too began to shed tears as he too realized that his Final is over. If the injury is severe, he could even be a doubt for the upcoming FIFA World Cup.
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| Carvajal exits the game with an injury |
With both teams failing to score in the 1st half, the game opened up much more in the second half, with Liverpool pressing high up the field. But Madrid had the best chances, first through Isco who hit the bar and then through Karim Benzema who found the net through Cristiano Ronaldo's saved effort but was called off-side.
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| Benzema's goal was ruled off-side |
But, what happened in the 51st minute couldn't have been called. Goalkeeper Karius receives the ball and looks to release it early, only for Benzema to put his foot in his path which deflects the goal into the net, giving Liverpool the lead, his 3rd goal in his last two appearances.
Liverpool responded in brilliant fashion as James Milner's corner saw Dejan Lovren get the right amount of contact to put the ball into the path of Sadio Mane to tap in the equalizer.
Zidane made his game-changing substitution as he was looking for the winning goal and brought on Gareth Bale to add pace to the attack. His first came through an absolutely stunning overhead kick, one of the best goals that have been scored in a UCL Final.
By scoring the second goal, Real began controlling the game as Liverpool were determined to find a way to equalize for the second time as Sadio Mane's low drive saw him hit the post.
Bale got possession of the ball yet again and tried his luck by curling in a long distance shot on goal which ultimately went in after Karius yet again made a horrific fumble, to sum up, his night and hand Real their 13th UCL crown.
Gareth Bale's career defying performance:
Bale's international manager and Welsh boss Ryan Giggs had called it that Bale's inclusion at any stage of the game could be a gamechanger and boy were he right. Zidane made a brave call by keeping Bale on the bench and launching him fresh as a substitute to attack a tiring Liverpool defense.
Two of finest ever UCL Final goals may have secured his future as Real Madrid player for the upcoming season and may have also won over the support from the fans.
Bale has stated that he intends to stay at Madrid with his genuine love for the club and after this performance, he will stay put at Madrid and may even be the first choice in the starting XI.
Fans will also be arguing whether Bale was the one with the best overhead kick or was it Ronaldo's overhead kick this season. Ultimately, both goals have won big games so it really doesn't matter whose was the best.
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| Gareth Bale's goal against Liverpool |
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| Cristiano Ronaldo's goal against Juventus |
Loris Karius' horrendous evening:
Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius may have had one of the worst nights any goalkeeper can have in a game as important as a UCL Final and eventually it was his inexperience that cost Liverpool the game.
The first mistake was a simple lack of awareness of the oppositon, something he needs to desparetely improve upon next season.
The second one was a mistake that a goalkeeper of his calibre shouldn't be committing with a shere lack of judgement.
After the match, he went over to apologize to the Liverpool fans as tears started rolling down his cheeks too. The Liverpool fans and his team may have forgiven him but now need to have confidence in his abilities and push him to move on from those errors.
He still has the ability to play in goal as Liverpool's No.1, but if needed the club can buy someone who is experienced and can teach him all the necessary traits needed to become a top-class goalkeeper.
Liverpool could have delivered a bit more, since it was their first UCL Final in 13 years but failed to rise up to the occasion. If Mohamed Salah would have been on the pitch the story may have been different.
Liverpool has time to put this result behind them and do their players and the manager. But, come the start of a new season, they will have to keep pushing on and look forward to achieving greater things in the future.
Real Madrid evaluation:
Ronaldo did make things happen for the entire game but failed to find a goal and wasn't at his scintillating best. But, he still managed to break a few records, including the one that he is now the first ever player to win 5 UCL titles.
The team was unified for the entire game and that's why they are walking away with the UCL title for a third straight time.
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| Real Madrid: Champions for a 13th time |
