Unexplainable, abnormal and magical. Real Madrid’s Champions League DNA is simply immortal

I’m sure many of you still don’t understand what happened last night at the Santiago Bernabéu. For the umpteenth time, Real Madrid came back from the dead to reach the Champions League final in sensational fashion.

“Real Madrid’s DNA is hard to explain to someone who has never seen Real play. It’s inexplicable, this club simply has something that others don’t,” explained legendary midfielder Guti recently in El Chirinquito, for example.

And let’s help ourselves with another quote from a former Real Madrid player. “When everyone thinks we are dead, we go and win the Champions League. That’s what Real Madrid is all about,” Álvaro Arbeloa proclaimed after the 2016 final.

There is an inexplicable magic at the Santiago Bernabéu. The stadium was hallowed in the last century by the spirit of Juanito, a former Real player we wrote more about here. Indeed, he was able to spur his team on to a turnaround when Los Blancos brought defeat from the first leg on several occasions.

When Real lost 0:2 to Inter in the 1985/86 season semi-final, Juanito famously said: “90 minutes at the Bernabéu is a very long time.” And he was absolutely right. It was proved again in the match against Manchester City.

After Mahrez’s goal, Real Madrid were already down by two goals (3: 5). The 89th minute was running and the Merengues had to score two goals to take the game into extra time. The mathematical probability counter on the screen for Real shows a probability of progress of just 1%.

But then the spirit of Juanito awoke. In the 90th minute, Camavinga’s centre of play is flicked into the box by Benzema to Rodrygo, who equalizes at 1-1. But one goal doesn’t solve anything, Real have to score a second and so they immediately go on the attack again.

In the 91st minute, a deflected ball reaches Carvajal, who sends a fluffy ball into the box, which Asensio licks in the air and Rodrygo heads it into the net. The Bernabéu erupts in sheer euphoria, as do millions of Real fans around the world.

How did this happen? No one can explain. Real Madrid were no better, in fact they didn’t even create any overwhelming pressure towards the end, they didn’t even have any clear cut chances in the last 15 minutes. Thibaut Cortois, on the other hand, grabbed at least two goals, Ferland Mendy kicked a goal from the line to make it 0:2.

But Real’s players have such great character, such will and such love for the club that they pushed until the last minute. And that’s why this happens so often at the Bernabéu. After all, Real had the toughest possible path to the final, PSG, Chelsea and Manchester City. And every time, they turned the game around in the rematch at the Bernabéu.

Once the game went into extra time, it was almost clear that Real Madrid would advance after a heart attacking finish. And that’s exactly what happened, with a penalty subsequently converted by Karim Benzema to send Los Blancos through to the final.

Even the most die-hard Real anti-fans have no choice but to smile. What Real are doing on the European stage is no longer a coincidence or a fluke. It’s just DNA. And deservedly, the club from Chamartín can call itself the King of Europe.

Source: UEFA, Real Madrid