Features
Real Madrid 2-0 Borussia Dortmund: Player ratings | UEFA Champions League final
The UEFA Champions League anthem rang around the walls of the mighty Wembley Stadium for the last time this season late on Saturday night as two teams took on the ultimate test in a bid for glory.
Real Madrid, the perennial favourites and the kings of the competition made a strong case to take home their 15th title. In their way, however, stood a mighty Borussia Dortmund who simply would not cave in.
In what will go down as one of the most tense and enthralling finals in recent years, the Yellow Army piled pressure on Los Blancos like very few teams have been able to this season. The first 45 minutes saw them overrun the favourites quite convincingly.
Absorbing the pressure inflicted on them for the better part of 70 minutes, Real Madrid slowly took control of the proceedings and found the much-required break through Dani Carvajal in the 74th minute. Eight minutes later, Vinicius Jr scored a lovely goal to provide his side with a cushion and seal the win.
The kings of the Champions League thus secured their historic 15th title, sending away a legend in Toni Kroos with the best possible farewell. A night to remember, one filled with ecstasy and emotion to no end.
Madrid Universal brings you the player ratings from the finale of the UEFA Champions League.
Thibaut Courtois: 8
It was clear for weeks that Thibaut Courtois was best placed to start the UCL final, and the Belgian international did not do much wrong at Wembley.
Indeed, he was far from his best and even lucky that the opposition hit the woodwork and missed glaring opportunities in the first period. Yet, Courtois did make two vital saves in the opening period and a massive save to deny Füllkrug’s header close to the hour mark.
Ferland Mendy: 8
With Marcel Sabitzer and Jadon Sancho both charging down his flank, Mendy was one of Real Madrid’s most busy defenders at Wembley and it is safe to say that he dished out a decent performance.
Given the pressure that was mounted on him, Dortmund inevitably got past his block at times on the night. Yet, he did hold his ground for the better part of the game and won 100% of his duels.
Nacho Fernandez: 6.5
A subpar performance from the captain who recorded only two defensive actions in the first 45 minutes when Los Blancos were on the constant back-foot. Not much changed after the break.
Antonio Rudiger: 7.5
Starting the UCL final as Real Madrid’s leader in defence, it is safe to say that Rudiger did not have the most memorable first half against Dortmund. The Germans regularly broke through Los Blancos’ block through central channels and the veteran did not provide the expected protection.
Returned stronger after the break, effectively closing down the leaks in defence.
Dani Carvajal: 9
The Real Madrid captain faced the heat going up against a fiery Karim Adeyemi and often came up second-best in 1v1 situations with the pacey winger.
Dortmund feasted on Carvajal’s slow legs in the second period of the first half, and while the first half was not memorable for him, he did produce a vital last-ditch clearance.
Pummeled a well-worked header past Gregor Kobel to give his side the lead in the 74th minute, earning himself the headline on the covers.
Toni Kroos: 8.5
Playing his last-ever game for Real Madrid, Kroos played with unreal composure through the 90 minutes. Patient and meticulous with transitions to attack, the German superstar’s distribution was impeccable.
Came up with the match-winning assist to Carvajal from the corner spot, working the ball to perfection with his trademark magical set-piece ability.
Eduardo Camavinga: 7.5
Operating as the pivot in the absence of Aurelien Tchouameni, Camavinga did well to hold his own defensively. Was indeed cut through multiple times in the opening period but solidified after the break.
Federico Valverde: 8
Valverde was perhaps the Merengues’ single-most important player in the first half as he worked relentlessly across the field to cut down Dortmund’s counters and create threats for Real Madrid. Completed 94% of his passes and provided one key pass at Wembley, but his impact fizzled out as the game progressed.
Jude Bellingham: 7
Going up against his former side, Bellingham was largely silent through the opening period and did not create any tangible threat in the final third.
Not a whole lot changed in the second period, although he did come very close to scoring in the 77th minute.
Vinicius Jr: 9.5
The Brazilian superstar did not see as much of the ball as he would have liked in the opening half but was indeed the team’s only threat in attack on the few occasions they did charge forward.
Turned into the protagonist in the second period when Real Madrid turned up the heat in attack, regularly getting into the Dortmund box. Scored the team’s second goal on the night with a calm finish from distance, sealing the team’s win.
Completed the game with a stunning eight successful dribbles and twelve duels won.
Rodrygo Goes: 7
Rodrygo was barely visible in the opening 45 minutes, completing just nine passes and not a single dribble in the process. Was better after the break but nowhere close to the expected level.
Features
Clean sheet at last, Vinicius’ moment of madness | Three takeaways from Real Madrid 1-0 Villarreal
Real Madrid took all three points against Villarreal on Saturday night to get back on track after the international break, and thus ensured they did not continue sinking after the defeat at the Madrid derby.
Jose Mourinho made some bold decisions in his starting XI as he benched Vinicius Jr., playing Yan Diomande on the left-flank and Arda Guler on the right flank.
The dynamics worked out decently well, and it was eventually the new record signing who scored for the club to hand them the lead and the win.
Compared to performances before the international break, there was an improvement in terms of Real Madrid’s level, but the team are still far off from where they must be to make a strong case to be title contenders.
Madrid Universal brings you three takeaways from Real Madrid 1-0 Villarreal.
The struggle continues
All of Real Madrid’s season so far has been of struggles and difficult wins, and the same theme continued last night as the team returned from the international break.
Los Blancos have failed to look convincing for a long time now, and they did not dominate Villarreal in any capacity last night as well.
Continuing with the same theme of winning by narrow margins and scraping past the finish line, they registered yet another 1-0 win that did not leave anyone convinced.
Yan Diomande’s goal was the only positive takeaway from the night, and even that was made possible only after a narrow offside decision went in their favor. With the firepower they have, struggling to create chances to such an extent seems inexcusable.
With a difficult month ahead, last night’s game did not give fans any reason to believe matters have changed after the international break. At this rate, the coming month could be a bleak one for Los Blancos.
Vinicius’ moment of madness
Of all the events that transpired at the Santiago Bernabeu last night, the most memorable one was the incident involving Vinicius Jr.’s goal, and embarrassingly so.
Having seemingly scored a great goal ten minutes after Diomande’s opener, the Brazilian star was on his way to celebrate the achievement, but what unfolded thereafter was embarrassing.
The VAR found an incident of Vinicius pulling the hair of a Villarreal player for no apparent reason in the build-up to the goal, and at this point there can be no arguments defending the player’s behavior.
As one of the biggest names of one of Europe’s biggest clubs, there has to be a sense of responsibility in one’s role – something Vinicius simply does not seem to have. What he did last night was simply inexcusable.
A lot can be said about VAR’s selective interference, but what cannot be argued is that what Vinicius did last night was a clear red card offense.
He will now miss El Clasico and will serve at least a two-game suspension. Whether that is a boon or a bane for Real Madrid, at this point, remains unknown and only time will tell.
A clean sheet at last
Ahead of last night’s win over Villarreal, Real Madrid had only overseen one clean sheet in eight games across competitions.
In that sense, simply keeping the opposition from scoring last night was an achievement in itself for Los Blancos, and it could not have come at a better time.
Real Madrid entered the game without many of their regular defenders available, especially with Dean Huijsen suspended and Eder Militao and Raul Asencio out through injury.
Ibrahima Konate and Antonio Rudiger, thus, started in central defense on the night and both did phenomenally well for Los Blancos. They were joined by Alvaro Carreras and Trent Alexander-Arnold, both of whom complemented the duo well.
The right-back was a relatively weak link defensively, but Konate and Rudiger were spot-on with their reading of the game to keep the Villarreal attack from scoring. They both did eventually pick up yellow cards, but Villarreal finished the game without a single big chance created.
Finding defensive stability, which is the cornerstone of Mourinho’s project, is massive for the manager, and he will be pleased to have a new working formula.
What happens after Huijsen’s return, however, remains to be seen, as the manager may well like to hand the new duo some more chances to prove their consistency.
