On Saturday night, Real Madrid broke the jinx, by successfully defending their Champions League trophy.
No team has achieved the feat in 27 years, ever since Arrigo Sacchi’s AC Milan managed to do it.
But what are the five things we learnt from the final in Cardiff?
You’re Ron on your way to the Ballon D’Or
There’s really no argument about which player will win the next Ballon D’Or. Cristiano Ronaldo netted a brace in the match and has now scored in three Champions League finals. He is surely going to equal Lionel Messi’s record of five Ballon D’Ors now, won’t he?
Madrid most successful club in Europe
The stats say it all. Third Champions League trophy in four years. First team to win it back to back in the modern era. Real Madrid have clinched the Big Ears for a record 12th time. Name another team as successful on the continent. I’ll wait.
Juventus and Allegri falter again
Two years ago, Massimiliano Allegri and Juventus were swept aside by another Spanish giant, Barcelona in Berlin. Tonight, it was Real Madrid’s turn to overpower the Serie A champions, despite their blistering start to the match. The Old Lady seemed to lose their way in the second half, as Zidane’s men turned the screw ruthlessly.
James Rodriguez is on his way out
Surely, the Colombian is not going to hang around the Santiago Bernabeu next season. He has been struggling for game time under Zidane all season long, but the ultimate humiliation was delivered in Cardiff, where he did not even make the match day squad.
Higuain and Benzema remain big-game bottlers
The sum total of what Gonzalo Higuain and Karim Benzema contributed to their respective teams is zero. That basically says it all.
‘Ifreke Inyang tweets via @Ifreke
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