Liverpool vs Real Madrid LIVE: Champions League final result, score and reaction
Relive all the action from the Stade de France after Vinicius ensured Real Madrid of a record-extending 14th European Cup
Liverpool were denied a seventh European crown as Real Madrid became kings of the continent once again thanks to Vinicius Junior’s strike in a Champions League final marred by chaos outside the Stade de France.
Paris stepped in as host after UEFA stripped St Petersburg of the showpiece following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but it did not provide a fitting host as European royalty went toe-to-toe in the biggest club match of the season.
Kick-off had to be delayed by 36 minutes due to substantial security issues outside the Stade de France, where Liverpool would be edged out 1-0 in a tense, engaging final settled by Real star Vinicius Jr.
Jurgen Klopp’s Reds were unable to find a response to the second-half strike as Carlo Ancelotti, managing a record fifth Champions League final just a year after leaving Everton, oversaw the Spanish giants’ 14th European Cup triumph.
It was a heartbreaking end to a memorable season for Liverpool, who won the Carabao Cup and FA Cup before being pipped to the Premier League title by a point and losing in the French capital.
Relive all the action from Paris:
Liverpool’s best-in-class mentality provides platform for continued success
Jurgen Klopp wasn’t wearing the Parisian beret that some of his players were, but he was wearing his medal and a celebratory T-shirt. There was also a huge smile, as he settled into his FA Cup post-match press conference at Wembley. Klopp was clearly in the mood to party.
That was why the one “complaint” was that his victorious team couldn’t go out and celebrate, since they have a match away to Southampton on Tuesday.
“Why do this,” Klopp wondered, “a competition as great as this.”
It was the persistent feeling throughout the day at Wembley, even amid the euphoria of victory. Liverpool constantly had to be conscious of what’s next. It was also why, as singularly brilliant as any FA Cup win should be – and especially a first in 16 years – this was always about so much more.
Liverpool’s best-in-class mentality provides platform for continued success
The Reds have now triumphed in both domestic cups this year and have an even bigger final still ahead
Real Madrid eye statement Champions League victory amid shifting landscape of European football
here has been one message that Florentino Perez has been especially keen to convey ahead of Real Madrid’s 17th Champions League final. That is to show Kylian Mbappe what he is missing.
The announcement of the French star’s signing ahead of a Paris final was intended to be a key part of the club’s build-up, fostering an even greater feeling that glory was inevitable. That was scuttled, and it has left the club scrambling – not least for a new signing.
Carlo Ancelotti is too much of a football man for such machinations, and too focused on his team, but he has told Perez it’s just one more setback to be overcome. That fits a theme, that the manager so pointedly asserted after the semi-final.
“I don’t think anybody – anybody – thought Madrid would play another Champions League final this season,” Ancelotti said, in a rare show of strong emotion. “And we’re there.”
That’s no empty statement, or a Jose Mourinho-type attempt to talk up his own impact. It’s true.
The great irony of Champions League’s clash of titans
When Mohamed Salah insisted he wanted Real Madrid in the Champions League final, it wasn’t just about revenge, or even himself. It reflected the view of a fair few people within Liverpool, but also the top levels of European football.
A grand showdown with Manchester City would have represented the zenith of modern football, bringing an era of rivalry to a peak, but it also would have peaked in terms of emotional intensity and Premier League domination. Jurgen Klopp’s players would have been ready, of course, but a third all-English final in four years would likely have been subject to the sort of stifling tension most one-country finals generally suffer from.
It similarly would have left the rest of Europe again feeling shut out.
There is little of that with Madrid. There isn’t quite the same sense of suffocation, since it feels someway different to be facing a big European club.
The great irony of Champions League’s clash of titans
Meeting of the game’s royalty draws parallels between the European Cup’s greatest eras – and why it might also be the future on a much more regular basis
Champions League Final: Liverpool fans light up Paris on eve of final
Champions League Final: Liverpool vs Real Madrid
Champions League Final: Liverpool vs Real Madrid
Champions League Final: Liverpool vs Real Madrid
The Champions League final is here! Welcome to The Independent’s coverage of Liverpool vs Real Madrid in Paris at the Stade de France.
The atmosphere is bubbling in the French capital, with both sets of fans eager to add more glory to their decorated past, with the Reds keen to make it seventh heaven and Los Blancos keen to bring up No 14 in terms of European crowns.
Over the next few hours we’ll build up to the game with preview material, predictions, odds, analysis and eventually team news when it hits around 7pm BST. So stay on top and keep checking back in as we get set for the biggest match in club football.
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