Spanish giants Real Madrid beat Liverpool 3-1 at Kiev’s NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium on Saturday to win their third UEFA Champions League trophy in a row.
The silverware also becomes the 13th Champions League win for the Galacticos.
Liverpool’s quest to win a sixth European trophy was worsened by the showing of German goalkeeper Loris Karius, whose mistakes got the winners all their three goals.
First, it was a 51st minute howler as he dropped a ball off the legs of French striker Karim Benzema. Karius had safely grabbed a loose cross from Madrid.
But he immediately wanted to throw it to his team’s right back when an outstretched leg of Benzema’s hit the ball into the open goal.
But just after a few minutes, the Reds equalised through Sadio Mane, whose touch of Dejan Lovren’s ball gave his team some hope.
A spectacular bicycle kick from substitute Gareth Bale, however, sent the Madridstas into the lead again.
He connected to a Marcelo cross after it went off a Liverpool defender for him to hit the ball with that technique.
Karius virtually gifted Bale the last goal as the Welsh captain’s long-range shot went through the fingers of the German goalie.
Madrid’s win of the Champions League is a landmark coaching success for Zinedine Zidane, who led the side in their two previous triumphs.
Source: 3news.com|Ghana