Barcelona drove Juventus into the ground in Berlin, winning the Champions League and completing a remarkable second triple for the Blaugrana.
Their opponents might have been undone by their own success - and there's no better example than Paulo Dybala - but it was Barcelona who were the team under pressure, with Thomas Muller scoring the only goal of the game after 89 minutes.
Dybala had given Barca a first-half lead when he scored his side's first goal at Camp Nou, but they were almost punished right away when Juve struck back through Gonzalo Higuain's penalty corner shot.
However, despite the numerical advantage of their opponents, Barcelona dominated the rest of the game, with Frenkie de Jong and Arthur playing a key role in the build-up to Muller's goal.
The Dutch striker took just three minutes to find the back of the net after some sloppy play from Barcelona, who failed to clear their lines during a quick Juve counterattack.
It was already 1-1 before Barca could even celebrate their first trophy since 2015, as Dybala fired home a penalty after being brought down by Samuel Umtiti.
The shootout was won by the Reds, 4-2. Barcelona headed into this game as huge favorites, led by midfielder Bernd Schuster and in front of an exuberant crowd in Seville. Steaua Bucuresti became the first Romanian club to reach the finals and the first Eastern European team to win the competition. They were eliminated after a dramatic penalty shoot-out against Liverpool, who will play Chelsea in London on June 9 for the trophy.
This was the second time that Liverpool had qualified for the final stage, but the first since 1990 when they lost 3-1 to Marseille at the Stade de France. Frenchman Eric Abidal had given Marseille a 1-0 lead before John Arne Riise scored a free kick equalizer just before half-time. In the added time, Peter Crouch scored an own goal to make it 2-1 to Liverpool.
In the penalty shoot-out, Daniel Agger missed his spot-kick while Javier Mascherano saved twice from Cosmin Contra and Viorel Moldovan. This is also the first time that an English team has won the shootout during the extra time period.
Liverpool reached the final stage with three victories and one draw. The only loss they suffered was during the group stage match against Steaua Bucuresti (1-0). That was enough to secure their place in the last four for another season.
Barcelona Winners' Season Player Club 2010-11 Messi, Lionel 2011-12 Barcelona's Andres Iniesta 2012-13 Ribery, Franck Bayern München
Everyone has their own point of view. Some consider Lionel Messi to be the finest player in the world right now, while Cristiano Ronaldo continues to dazzle at the age of 33, and his honors make him a viable candidate.
Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Virgil Van Dijk squared off. The Liverpool defender won the UEFA Men's Player of the Year honor, but he did not win the prestigious FIFA World Player of the Year accolade. Barcelona captain Lionel Messi won this prize by defeating that duo, who were also in contention. The Argentine forward scored a record-breaking number of goals in one season to claim his fifth trophy.
Messi finished with 28 goals in all competitions, including six in the Club World Cup. He helped Barcelona retain the Spanish title after scoring a goal in each of their last five games. The club also reached the semi-finals of the Champions League for the second year running.
Ronaldo continued his superb form with Madrid by helping them win their third consecutive La Liga title. The Portuguese forward scored 26 goals this season as he attempted to follow in the footsteps of Diego Maradona who is the only player to score in every match of the Mundialito tournament. However, Madrid were defeated by Juventus in the final of the latter's tournament.
Van Dijk has been outstanding for Liverpool this season. The Dutch defender was part of the team that won the Club World Cup last month. He also helped his side achieve fourth place in the Premier League.
Later that year, he won the Ballon d'Or, confirming his standing as, for the time being, the greatest on the globe. Alberto Gilardino: Prior to coming off the bench to put the finishing touches on Milan's European campaign, the centre-forward had only scored once. Now he has five goals in six matches.
He is the first Italian player to win the award since Roberto Baggio in 1992. The last Milan player to score in a Champions League match was Luca Scapuzzi in the second round of the 1995-96 season against Parma. That was also the last time they reached the quarter-finals. Since then, they have never gone beyond that stage.
In February 2012, during a game between Milan and Juventus, Massimo Ambrosini went over with his team chasing the match. He suffered serious injuries and was given just a chance of surviving. However, he recovered fully and continues to play today.
Overall, he has played a major part in every one of Milan's successes since he made his debut in 1994. In addition to two Serie A titles, two Coppa Italia wins, and two Supercoppa Italiana victories, he has also won the UEFA Cup twice. He currently plays in China for Shanghai SIPG FC.
Gilardino is regarded as one of Italy's best strikers.
Bayern began the game and won 4-0 to secure the domestic double. Muller led the competition with four goals and two assists, making him the season's highest scorer. Bayern's season finished with the 2010 Champions League Final versus Inter Milan at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid, where they were chasing their first triple. The Germans were defeated 1-7.
Thomas Muller started the match and played for over an hour before being substituted for Arjen Robben. He was given a standing ovation by the crowd at the end of the match.
Muller has been instrumental in Germany's successes at this year's UEFA European Championships. He scored both his team's goals in the quarter-final win over France and also found the net against Spain in the semi-final. Germany went on to win the tournament for the first time since 2008.
Before joining Bayern Munich in 2009, Muller played for Hamburg SV. He made his debut for Germany in 2005 when he came on as a substitute in a 3-1 win over England. He went on to play in another three matches without scoring before leaving the squad due to injury. Muller has been selected for Germany's squad for the upcoming FIFA World Cup in South Africa. He is expected to be named in Joachim Löw's squad during the week beginning 2 June.
Copyright © 2020 - 2023 Sportsmanist Inc.
