Super Bale Sinks Liverpool as Madrid Makes It Three in a Row
Kiev. Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale scored a jaw-dropping overhead kick and a long distance strike to give his side a 3-1 win over Liverpool in the Champions League final on Saturday (26/05) , delivering a remarkable third consecutive title for the Spaniards.
Substitute Bale, who also scored in Real's 2014 final win over Atletico Madrid, had only been on the pitch for three minutes when he rose to meet Marcelo's cross in the air from outside the box, sending it flying into the net to restore Real's lead in the 64th minute at NSC Olympic Stadium.
French forward Karim Benzema had put Madrid ahead in the 51st minute by sticking out a leg as Liverpool's German keeper Loris Karius attempted to throw the ball to a teammate, sending it trickling over the line, but Sadio Mane leveled from close range in the 55th for Juergen Klopp's side.
Bale then sealed Madrid's record-extending 13th European Cup win and piled more misery on Karius with a long-range strike in the 83rd minute, which went straight through the hands of the hapless goalkeeper.
Real become the first side since Bayern Munich in 1976 to win the trophy three years in a row and Zinedine Zidane the is the first coach to win three back-to-back titles.
Liverpool's talismanic forward Mohamed Salah was forced off in the first half with a suspected dislocated shoulder after tangling with Madrid captain Sergio Ramos, while Real defender Dani Carvajal also left the pitch in tears after getting injured before halftime.
Losing as a Team
Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson conceded that Real Madrid deserved to win its third straight Champions League title and would not blame goalkeeper Karius for his two huge mistakes that cost them goals.
"It's disappointing, of course. We did well to get the goal and get back into the game but we made mistakes and Real Madrid were really good. They’re a fantastic side and will always hurt you, they deserved to win and were better on the night," Henderson said.
"The first 30 or 35 minutes, we dominated with the ball, had a couple of chances but it is frustrating. You have to give credit to them."
Liverpool lost its leading scorer, Egypt forward Mohamed Salah, to a shoulder injury in the 31st minute and that bitter blow clearly affected the Merseysiders.
"When Mo Salah got injured they started to dominate with the ball. They scored a goal, which was offside in the first half but we stayed in the game," Henderson added.
"We still believed we could go on but there were a couple of goals on another night, which would not have gone in."
Real went ahead after the break when the ill-fated Karius threw the ball out towards forward Karim Benzema whose outstretched leg turned it into the unguarded goal.
"The first goal I am not sure what happened... and then the overhead kick he [Karius] could do nothing about. The third goal, the ball had loads of movement on it. It is not the mistakes Loris Karius made, we got to the final as a team and lose as a team. It is about everybody.
"We were not good enough on the night, and I am so proud of the players and the fans who came out for us on the night. I hope we can carry on and get into more finals and use it going forward," the England international said.
"Football moves forward, we have a World Cup coming up, so you have to move on and the season starts really quickly. We have to be proud of getting here. It will hurt for a while but we have to keep going."
Reuters
Tags: Keywords: