Saturday, May 24, 2014

UEFA Champions League Final: Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid –As It Happened

UEFA Champions League Final: Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid –As It Happened

  
 
UEFA Champions League Final: Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid –As It Happened
Real Madrid have finally won the "La Decima". It has been a 12 year wait for them. They have been the best team in the tournament. Carlo Ancelotti becomes only the second manager to win the Champions League on three occasions.

But spare a thought for the Atletico side. They have fought extremely well tonight and throughout the season. Absolutely no shame in losing to this Real side. The final score does not justify the effort of the players. This by no means was a one sided match.

Congratulations to Real Madrid on winning their 10th UEFA Champions League.


FT:Real Madrid 4-1 Atletico Madrid

120'GOAL! Ronaldo finally gets his goal. 4-1

PENALTY TO REAL
This is now turning into a rout. Ronaldo to take it.

118'GOAL! MARCELO!
Final nail in the coffin.

116'Now the Atletico half is full of gaping holes. Di Maria slip at the crucial moment or he was through one-on-one with Courtois!

114'Casillas is almost caught out again as he comes out but does not collect a long ball, leaving an empty goal. Fortunately for him, Tiago shoots over the goal.

110'Di María effort is saved by Courtois and the ball kindly loops up for Bale, who easily heads into the empty net. Incredible scenes.

110' GOALLLLL! Its Bale. Worth every penny now?

109'Atlético struggling to retain possession. That goal by Madrid seems to have demotivated them. Madrid are quick to snatch the ball back and resume the attack.

105'Players and managers will be thinking about the penalties now. No team wants to make a mistake here.

And so begins the last round of this epic battle. 15 minutes before we head to the penalties.

End of the first extra half:1-1

105'Juanfran brings down Ronaldo to prevent him from racing into a dangerous area. Mental fatigue is setting in the players now. Real are energized after that last minute goal.

104'Gabi makes sure Carvajal has no option but to concedea corner, and Atletico get men forward. Rare attack by them during this period of extra time. The resulting corner is cleared by the first line of Real defense.

102'Ronaldo's free-kick is deflected by Godin for a corner. Ronaldo appeals for a handball but he is ignored by the ref.

101'Marcelo has been the best substitution for Real. Gabi clips the Brazilian who is too quick for him. Free-kick to Real and a yellow card for Gabi.

99'Marcelo tricks Juanfran who clearly is very tired and sends in a low cross across the face of the goal. Miranda clears the ball before Morata can reach it.

95'Di Maria moves down the left and has plenty of options, but the Atletico defense shuts him out quickly.

No guesses as to who MS Dhoni is backing to lift the cup. He has just tweeted:

Fantastic football going on

Extra time will b interesting,no more subs available and many yellow cards shown,test of fitness and how well
they control their mind

Let's c who can keep up with bale's pace,isco will be good

90'+4

You HAVE to feel for Atletico Madrid there. So close yet so far. We also must mention the resilience of this Madris side, they kept attacking till the last minute. Great for all the neutrals out there. Extra time underway.


FULL TIME: Real Madrid 1-1 Atletico Madrid

90'+4HEARTBREAK! GOAL! Good lord. What a cracking header by Ramos. With one minute left on the clock, Ramos has put an indelible mark on this match. We are most certainly headed into extra time now.

90'Simeone is motivating his men in the last few minutes of this epic battle. His players seem to respond. So does the crowd. Five minutes of stoppage time has been signaled.

86'Yellow card for Koke. He tried to hold back Modric. Time is ticking away.

86'Ronaldo's delivery is heroically cut out by Juanfran who throws himself at the ball before it was met by Marcelo who was charging towards it.

84'Relentless pressure from Real now in an attempt to breach the Atletico defense. Simeone's soldiers are holding on though. Too much tension inside the stadium now.

82'Atletico make their final substitution now. They replace Felipe Luis with Toby Alderweireld.

80'Benzema's night is over. He is replaced by Morata. Only 10 minutes plus stoppage time left now. Real have made all their substitutions.

78' And now Bale. Oh my. So close again. Bale leaves Godin in his wake n the right, reaches the box with sheer pace but scoffs his shot. What a chance for Bale.

76' Marcelo has definitely helped the Madrid cause here. He launches yet another glorious cross-field ball to Ronaldo who shoots but narrowly misses the target. They are looking dangerous now.

74'Another yellow card. This time for Juanfran as he fouls Di Maria.

72'Yellow card for Villa. He went sliding into Casillas despite the goalkeeper clearly being the first to get to the ball.

70'Marcelo launches a trademark cross-field ball into Bale who brings it down and finds himself in a decent position. Referee blows his whistle as Bale used a part of his arm to control the ball.

68' Isco drags his shot wide. Patient build from Madrid there with a move involving Ronaldo and Benzema, who beautifully held up the ball and then set up the Isco.

66' Second substitution by Diego Simeone. He replaces Garcia with Jose Sosa. Good move by him. Garcia was already on a yellow.

62'Ronaldo jupms into the air to meet a cross from the left flank. Unfortunately even Benzema can't benefit from that Ronaldo header. Real need more of that.

61'Madrid are looking for an equalizer now as is evident from the two substitutions,both of which are attack-minded players. Atletico are doing a solid job of marshaling their lines.

59'Alright! Ancelotti's has had enough. He rings in a double substitution. Isco for Khadira and Marcelo for Coentrao.

56'Ronaldo heads the resulting corner and Atletico briskly launch a counter. TImely block from Carvajal but he can't prevent a corner.

54'Free-kick in Ronaldo's territory. Coutois pushes the ball for a corner from the deflected free-kick.

53'Miranda prevents Di Maria from racing into the box. He picks up a yellow card for his troubles. Second player from Atletico to go into the book.

51'Raul Garcia volleys from the edge of the area. This after Koke made a near impossible cross from the left flank. Shot sails over.

49'Gabi fouls Modric inside the Atletico half. Di Maria takes the resulting free-kick which is thwarted away by Miranda.

47' No changes from either side as the second half is under way here in Lisbon.

Apart from that golden opportunity for Bale, Real have failed to create any clear cut chances in the final. Cristiano Ronaldo has been fairly quiet and hasn't been involved any major constructive move of Real.

Atletico, who have mastered the smash and grab art form are playing to their strengths. They are maximizing their chances from set-pieces. Despite Costa having limped off early, Simeone's men have managed to hold off the start studded Madrid side with ease.

Only 45 minutes separate Atletico's gladiators from a historic win. What a story this has been so far.


HALF TIME: Real Madrid 0-1 Atletico Madrid

45'Sami Khedira is booked. He is the second Madrid player to be cautioned here tonight.

42'Atletico fans are going crazy in the stands,. It has been 40 years since the last time they made it to the final of the European Cup. Making every moment count.

41'Gabi with another corner that the Mardid defense finds tough to clear. Adrian meets it, but he header goes over the crossbar. Real are having problems dealing with these corners and free-kicks.

40'The goal seems to have energized Simeone's men. They are thronging forward in numbers.

36' GOAL! It's that man Godin again. What a dream start for Atletico and Godin who also scored last week with a header against Barcelona. This time Gabi's corner is cleared by the defense but is floated back in by Juanfran. Casillas is does not clear it but Godin meets it with his head for the first goal of the final.

33'Massive chance! Bale was through on goal there after an error by Thiago. Bale's blistering pace helped him beat two players but with just the goalkeeper to beat, the Welshmen shot wide. Poor miss.

29'Koke needs to careful here. He has committed two quick fouls in a matter of few minutes. The ref let's him go with a warning. Probably for the last time.

27'Ronaldo takes the free-kick, but Courtois is up to the task and saves easily. Ramos is handed out a yellow card for his needless protest.

26'Di Maria runs down in the Atletico half, and Garcia hacks him to the floor and becomes the first player to go into the ref's book. Ramos is very animated and is in the ref's face. This could be trouble.

24' Courtois again with yet another easy collection. The cross from Di Maria is no good.

22'Gabi makes a late challenge on Di Maria. Free-kick to Madrid, which is taken by Modric, but the Croatian fails to find his teammates and Courtois collects the ball cleanly.

20'Looks like Ronaldo and Bale have switched sides. The Atletico defense is holding firm to any danger posed by the Madrid attackers. But Coutois has been comfortable so far.

18'Atletico are staying true to form here. Madrid are being crowded out in front of the 18-yard area and a a result they are failing to create openings.

16'Gabi does not like Coentrao's challenge on him and the duo get into a tussle. The ref is prompt in settling the issue.

14'Gabi's pass finds Adrian who is quick enough to run past the defenders but can't seem to beat Casillas who is first to the ball and punts it clear.

12'Lovely patient play from Madrid, building up the attack that resulted in a Di Maria cross which was very deep and couldn't find a player in white.

8' Problems for Atletico. Their star man Diego Costa is limping off the pitch. Simeone makes his first substitution. Adrián López come on.

5' Benzema tries to put Bale through but Courtois is alert and collects the ball.

3' Ronaldo being marked very tightly. Fouled by Miranda near the center circle.

2' Real with the early possession and passing the ball around.

Xabi Alonso misses the match due to suspension. Will Madrid miss him?

Surprise! Diego Costa starts...

Atletico Madrid:Courtois; Juanfran, Godin, Miranda, Filipe Luis; Gabi, Tiago, Koke, Raul Garcia; Villa, Diego Costa


Real Madrid: Casillas, Varane, Ramos, Coentrão, Khedira, Cristiano Ronaldo, Benzema, Bale, Carvajal, Modric, Di María

And we have both the teams

STAT: Only six managers (Benitez, Lattek, Mourinho, Paisley, Trapattoni, Van Gaal) have won the Champions League and UEFA Cup. Diego “El Cholo” Simeone could be the seventh.

STAT: The final tonight will mark the 200th appearance of Real Madrid in the Champions League. The only other team to play 200 games in Europe's elite club competition are Manchester United.

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