There are ten years of Real Madrid history that constitute something like the gold standard of football greatness. Between June 13, 1956 and May 11, 1966, they won six European Cups, the first five in a row. A few months later UEFA allowed them to keep the original trophy. Then 32 years of emptiness also began. This Saturday’s final against Borussia Dortmund at Wembley (9:00 p.m., La1 and Movistar) represents the unusual possibility of reproducing something similar to what happened then more than half a century later. Ten years also separate the final of the Décima from the opportunity this Saturday, which would be, as then, the sixth European Cup of the cycle, the 15th in its history.
From Lisbon to London, from 2014 to 2024, Carlo Ancelotti is the thread that sews Madrid’s second great golden era, along with Nacho, Modric and Carvajal, who were then and are still now, on the hunt for Gento, the only footballer with six Orejonas. He is also pursued by Kroos, who won one at Bayern. The Italian opened a cycle in Lisbon that was later extended with three in a row by his assistant that night, Zinedine Zidane, and that Carletto resumed on his return to the Bernabéu in 2022. Looking on the verge of a major achievement, Ancelotti summarized the vertigo this Friday: “ When the final arrives, success is very close, very very close. Then the worry begins. It’s what’s going to start tomorrow morning, tomorrow afternoon. A lot of worry, a lot of fear. Its normal. The more afraid you are, the happier you are if you are able to win.”
The rival who stands in the way of the feat has in a certain way also played a role in the construction of the legend of recent years. Dortmund is the last team to eliminate Madrid in the Champions League before starting the second cycle. The development of that 2013 semi-final foreshadowed the comebacks that have characterized the final stretch of these ten years. The Germans won 4-1 in the first leg with a poker from Lewandowski. In the second leg at the Bernabéu, Madrid came to a boil very close to the end: Benzema scored 1-0 in the 82nd minute and Ramos scored 2-0 in the 88th minute. They were one goal away from extra time, but they sowed the seed of a disturbing legend.
A couple of years later, Xabi Alonso recounted in an interview in The world the sighting in the rivals of a terror that later devastated Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea, Manchester City and Bayern: “When we scored 2-0 against Dortmund and there were only five minutes left, you saw some faces on the Germans… Their lives were going away right there.” Hummels, Reus (who says goodbye to his team today) and Modric survive that night. “We prefer to go ahead, if possible,” the Croatian said this Friday. “But we have shown that when things don’t go well, we continue to trust and fight until the end. “We always find a way, and we are able to reverse the situation.”
Nacho doesn’t feel like needing a heroic night either: “We prefer to start winning. Although it may not seem like it, on the field we also suffer when we are losing,” he said.
The assault on the 15th takes place in a scenario whose choice does not seem coincidental. It will be the eighth final of the European Cup at Wembley, the most repeated venue, and yet a stadium that has not yet seen Madrid win. The London temple, which marks the history of the tournament, hosted the last final of the old format, in 1992, when Barcelona debuted, and this Saturday it also hosts the last of the format with the group stage. Next season a league will be released before the matches.
Madrid’s efforts intersect at another point with Dortmund, from whom they signed Jude Bellingham in the summer for 103 million plus extras, the player who launched the team in the initial stretch of the season, the steepest due to injuries. The Germans have reached the final despite no longer having the Englishman, which, according to their coach, Edin Terzic, hindered their start to the season: “We were not able to be at our best level at the beginning. But we are a totally different team from the one that started in September.” This evolution, in addition to the route in the quarterfinals, against Atlético, and the semifinals, against PSG, against those who were not favorites, induces him to show ambition: “If we are brave, if we are capable of showing that we are not here to see how Madrid lifts its trophy, then we will have a chance.”
The German club is seeking its second Champions League, after 1997, a triumph that would underline the solidity of a peculiar project in Europe: it recruits young talent, gives it opportunities to compete and grow, and sells it at a high price. And despite this permanent escape, he manages to continue competing at the top.
On the other hand, Modric tried to introduce some caution into the forecasts: “Everyone considers us favorites, but we don’t think that way. The game is 50-50. “We play against a great team that has had a magnificent season in the Champions League.” Also against the one who has recorded the most clean sheets – six in 12 games – as Terzic recalled, pointing to one of his strengths in the face of the threat of Vinicius, who, after a highly successful semi-final, is looking at his first great opportunity to win. catch the Ballon d’Or. Also his second Orejona.
This Saturday at Wembley is a historic, and also sentimental, high-voltage match, the one that sees Kroos, and perhaps Nacho, farewell from Madrid, on the night in which they can catch up with Gento and close the circle of the second great era at the height of the foundation.
You can follow Morning Express Deportes inFacebook andxor sign up here to receiveour weekly newsletter.
.
.
_
