The football holiday turned out to be not at all as serene and joyful as one might expect. The start of the match was delayed by more than half an hour - according to official data, for security reasons. However, it is not clear what actually caused the delay.
In addition, as commentators Konstantin Genich and Georgy Cherdantsev said on Match TV , thousands of fans ended up in the stands without tickets.
The brother of Liverpool player Joel Matip Marvin could not get to the match - together with his wife he was forced to take refuge in a restaurant nearby so as not to fall under the distribution. The football player himself, in a commentary to journalist Fabrizio Romano , said that the level of organization is not worthy of the Champions League final, and the use of gas in a crowd of people where there are children is simply dangerous. Also, with great difficulty, the outstanding striker of the “Reds” Kenny Dalglish made his way to the stadium - the police in their official zeal did not make out whether ordinary fans or prominent football figures were in front of them.
However, a truly festive atmosphere reigned in the Stade de France bowl. The stadium, painted in red and white, welcomed world sports stars who decided to attend the match with a standing ovation. So, the scoreboard showed the famous Spanish tennis player Rafael Nadal , talking with the Brazilian legend Ronaldo - the same Zubastik, who from 2002 to 2007 was enchanting as part of Real Madrid.
As for football itself, the impressions of the match undoubtedly brightened up the dissatisfaction of the fans with the organization - or at least the part of them that supported the future champions. Predicting who will be stronger seemed a difficult and, perhaps, meaningless task. Teams that are able to turn the course of any match in seconds have entered the field.
The first half was played with the advantage of Liverpool. By the 21st minute, the nominal hosts could have scored at least twice. First, Mohamed Salah struck into the bottom corner, which was not easily reflected by Thibaut Courtois. And then fortune turned out to be on the side of the Belgian goalkeeper of Real Madrid: after Sadio Mane's shot, Courtois hit the ball into the post, but none of the Merseysiders could adapt to the episode and play the rebound, and as a result, the goalkeeper tightly fixed the ball.
Nevertheless, Real Madrid pumped up, and the goal did not have to wait long. In the 59th minute, the "creamy" opened the scoring thanks to a goal from Vinicius, who closed the cross from Valverde. Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold missed the opponent and could not step into an artificial offside in time: on the replay it was clear that Vinicius was on the same line with Trent at the time of the pass, but still did not get into the offside position.
This alignment, of course, did not suit the "Reds", who, however, could not organize a sharp attack, while also allowing failures in defense. In the 64th minute, Salah decided to take the initiative into his own hands - from the corner of the penalty area, he struck a tricky shot into the far corner, but Courtois managed to ward off the threat in an incredible jump. And a few minutes later, the same Salah tried to close the discount at the far post, and again Courtois worked brilliantly, having managed to move and put his foot in the path of the ball.
Speaking objectively, it was the Belgian who became the protagonist of the second half - and, perhaps, of the entire match. After a missed goal, Liverpool seized the initiative and totally dominated the field.
And yet, Jurgen Klopp's wards failed to use any of their many chances. Real Madrid had far fewer chances, but managed them better - it turned out to be enough to convert only one. The final whistle of Turpin recorded the victory of Madrid: for the 14th time they became the winners of the Champions League.