Memorable moments: Bale’s famous scissors in the Champions League final

The 2018 Champions League final is still famous today thanks to the mistakes of Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius. However, it would be a shame to forget one magical moment because of this, namely Gareth Bale’s scissor kick that sent Real Madrid into a 2-1 lead. One of the most beautiful goals in the history of LM finals.

Bale’s stint at Real is now, shall we say, littered with his unconvincing performances of recent years in the white jersey and, above all, his controversial excesses. An example is the celebration in the national team jersey, when he celebrated with a Welsh flag that read

But his first few seasons at the Santiago Bernabeu in particular were worth it, and together with Ronaldo and Benzema he formed one of the most striking attacking trios in history. After all, no team apart from Real Madrid has been able to defend its Champions League title and the team around Ronaldo, Modric, Ramos and others have won the millionaire competition three times in a row.

Moreover, in the 2013/14 edition, the “Ballets” also cuddled with the Eared Cup, thus in his first five years in Madrid, Bale lifted the most prestigious club trophy above his head four times. This cannot be taken as anything other than an absolute success.

However, it is true that in the 2016/17 and 2017/18 seasons, Zinedine Zidane was particularly fond of the 4-1-2-1-2 diamond formation, where there was no room for Welshman and he was replaced by Isco. But he was often a more than valid substitute, and that’s exactly what he proved to be in the Kiev final in May 2018.

He came on in the 61st minute in a 1-1 draw and changed the fate of the match. But above all, he indelibly etched his name in the annals of Champions League finals. From the match report, his performance against Liverpool could be summed up by the popular English expression “super sub”.

Three minutes after running onto the pitch, he was looking for a place in the English opponent’s sixteen. Brazilian Marcelo, on the left, indicated a left-footed centre and stuck a weaker right to send the ball into the whitewash. The centred ball flew, in football parlance, on its heels, but that didn’t bother the Welshman.

Bale swiftly leapt into the air and, feet first, sent a left-footed meruna beyond the reach of the sadly gliding goalkeeper Karius. It’s hard to imagine a more stylish way to send his team into the lead in the final of the world’s most prestigious club competition.

Bale added one more goal in the 83rd minute, with a big assist from Karius, and from the 30th minute onwards, playing without Salah, the Reds knew the game was over.

It was Bale who, from the bench, was responsible for Real’s third Champions League triumph in a row. Just for context, no other team has managed to win the millionaire competition even twice in a row. The White Ballet thus created a historical record that may remain intact for a couple of decades.

Sources: UEFA, Transfermarkt