Real Madrid secured their 13th European Cup and their fourth in five years with a 3-1 victory over Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool side at the NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium in 2017-18.
t would be Gareth Bale who would emerge as the hero, coming off the bench to score a miraculous overhead kick before netting again via a mistake from Loris Karius. The Liverpool goalkeeper suffered a nightmare performance, gifting Madrid the lead by throwing the ball off Karim Benzema, before mishandling Bale’s strike.
CHANGES
Paris Saint-Germain’s pursuit of Champions League success became increasingly obsessive, and they offered a further statement of intent by securing the most expensive transfer in history, unveiling Neymar from Barcelona for €222 million, as well as Kylian Mbappe on loan from Monaco, with the obligation to buy in the summer. Manchester City typically spent big, with Kyle Walker, Bernardo Silva, Benjamin Mendy, and Ederson just some of their recruits. Barcelona appointed Ernesto Valverde as their new head coach, with the Blaugrana spending a large portion of the Neymar money on Ousmane Dembele, and then Philippe Coutinho in January. Zinedine Zidane, seemingly happy with his squad, decided against making a marquee signing as Los Blancos looked to defend their Champions League title. Manchester United, back in the tournament with Jose Mourinho, brought in Romelu Lukaku and then Alexis Sanchez.
SUMMARY
Defending champions Real Madrid started the group stage well and dispatched of Apoel Nicosia and Borussia Dortmund with ease. However, they would come unstuck in the double-header against Tottenham, with Spurs earning a draw at the Santiago Bernabeu before putting Madrid to the sword 3-1 at Wembley, with Dele Alli scoring twice. Zidane’s men would qualify but only in second place.
For the most part, the seeded teams progressed in the group stage. However, there was surprise exits for Atletico Madrid, who had reached the final in 2014 and 2016, Monaco, who were losing…
Source link : https://www.footballcritic.com/season-reviews/unstoppable-real-madrid-clinch-third-consecutive-crown-champions-league-2017-18/28
Author : editors@footballcritic.com (Martin Macdonald)
Publish date : 2024-07-23 15:00:00
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