Real Madrid wins Champions League ‘in shirt’ and with Brazilian goal

“When the team doesn’t give anything, the shirt is hoisted, unfurled, by invisible hands. Opponents, judges, flags tremble then, intimidated, cowed, beaten.” The text is from 1955 – and about Flamengo, written by the chronicler Nelson Rodrigues in Manchete Esportiva –, but it seems like a good summary of what led Real Madrid to conquer the Champions League in 2021/22, its 14th.

In the decision, this Saturday (28), in Paris, the Spanish team defeated Liverpool 1-0, with a goal from Brazilian Vinicius Junior. It thus ended a campaign in which it faced enormous difficulties, was repeatedly close to elimination and overthrew opponents by which, in most of the clashes, it was dominated.

“There’s no explanation, these are things that only happen here. This shirt teaches us to fight and never give up”, said forward Rodrygo, hero of the most unlikely comeback against Manchester City in the semifinals. “I looked at the shield and thought we’d already done it before.”

They did.

In the group stage, the prospect of a 14th title – twice as many victories as second-placed Milan – seemed like a joke at moments like the defeat to the tiny Sheriff of Moldova. But the team advanced to the knockout stages and, round after round, faced rivals considered as favorites – and who proved to be superior until some point in the second half of the second game.

Against Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16, the 1-0 defeat in Paris was treated as a blessing. Goalkeeper Courtois had to make several difficult saves, one of which was a penalty taken by Messi, so that the damage was minimal.

In Madrid, already in the final stage, Mbappé repeated what he had done in France and scored the net. The elimination, at that point, seemed well underway. Then, in 17 minutes, with good collaboration from the goalkeeper Donnarumma, Benzema scored three times. Real were almost down when their rivals opened the door for them.

“You see: – a shirt that just needs to say goodbye and turn somersault. When the team doesn’t give anything else, when the defense collapses, and the attack founders, the shirt comes and saves everything. In front of it, everyone squats, everyone squatting down, everyone drools with cosmic terror”, wrote Nelson Rodrigues – in 1956, again in Manchete Esportiva, once again extolling the power of the Flamengo uniform.

Real Madrid’s white clothing –inspired by the Englishman Corinthian Football Club, which, in turn, inspired the creation of Sport Club Corinthians Paulista– is also heavy. But when the team went 3-1 over Chelsea in London, few thought it necessary to evoke the mystique in the quarter-finals.

In Spain, Chelsea – nouveau riche with an enormously lesser tradition – showed voluptuousness in defending the 2021 title and surprised, opening 3-0. Again, towards the end of the game, Madrid were on the ropes. He scored, with the Brazilian Rodrygo, and forced extra time, in which Benzema appeared again, strong candidate for the best in the world in 2022.

Thus, when Real found themselves face to face with another upstart, the talented Manchester City of the acclaimed coach Pep Guardiola, even before the confrontation, one of the subjects was already the difference in the weight of the shirts. And the madridista coach, the multi-champion Carlo Ancelotti, pointed out that this was not just a factor of terror in the opponent but especially of confidence in the athletes in white.

“The history that Real Madrid has in this competition means much more to us than to rivals. This history helps the players feel the weight of this shirt. A weight that is positive, not negative”, said the Italian coach.

In Manchester, his team was three times behind on the scoreboard by two goals difference. The 4-3 defeat, again, was seen as something positive in the face of what was seen on the field.

In Madrid, in the return match, the shirt had its best performance.

Manchester City made it 1-0 in the 28th minute of the second half. And he built clear chances to score more goals. In one of them, goalkeeper Courtois was beaten by Grealish. But someone dressed in the Real Madrid shirt – Mendy, even if the name printed on the kit was a detail – appeared at the top of the line to avoid the worst.

Still, surviving was nearly impossible. Then, Rodrygo scored in the 45th and 46th minutes, forcing another extra time. There, humiliated, the City shirt only awaited the final blow of the rival shirt, delivered with the help of Benzema.

“The weight of the shirt and the pride of the club also play a role”, vibrated Ancelotti, aware that the merit of the triumph was not exactly his.

It is true that there were talented people wearing the uniform. But Real Madrid, in a moment of financial difficulty while renovating its stadium and in a political war with UEFA, the entity that organizes European football, did not start the Champions League as a favorite.

Even in the decision, after all the saga of the campaign, the purely technical and tactical analysis pointed to Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool as the superior side. And what was seen on the field in almost the entire first half was just that. Courtois had to make several difficult saves, and also count on the post in one of them, to keep the score at zero.

On the other side, practically on the first arrival, in the 43rd minute, Benzema scored the net. The bid was invalidated, due to offside, after a long video review, but the message was given that Real, despite all the difficulty in the game, was Real.

In the final stage, when Liverpool tried again to establish pressure – but, worn out, without the same strength –, Valverde managed to advance on the right side with some freedom. After the cross kick, at 14, Vinicius Junior appeared on Alexander-Arnold’s back to complete.

Klopp’s men pursued the attack until the end. When they overcame the outfield players, they stopped at Courtois, in yet another exceptional performance, in the uniform that came out victorious in their last seven appearances in the European championship decision.

The hyperbolic Nelson Rodrigues, a Fluminense fan, predicted that the day would come when Flamengo would not need “players, or coaches, or anything”. “The shirt, open at the bow” would suffice. “In the face of the impotent fury of the adversary”, it would be “an impregnable bastille”.

Real Madrid, of course, needed Courtois, Rodrygo, Benzema and Vinicius Junior. It needed great casting management from Carlo Ancelotti. But none of them has any doubts about who was largely responsible for the conquest.

“How can you resist a shirt that has its own sweat, that sweats on its own, that gasps, and sobs, and cries?”