Champions League final post-match discussion: Borussia Dortmund vs Real Madrid

Madridista here. You have to feel for BVB.

I don't have the free time to watch as much football as I used to, so the only full matches I watch anymore are of Madrid. I'd only seen highlights of a few matches from Dortmund this season, from the quarterfinals forward. I knew they were a solid team, their first-half performance was really impressive. It was perfect as they could have hoped for without scoring. Football has a way of making you pay when you don't take your chances though.

Once the whistle blew for halftime and it was still 0-0, I knew Madrid were going to win. Vini was rumored to be playing on medication and he didn't look sharp; Bellingham was tracking back a lot and not having much impact in attack; and I'd been hoping for Rodrygo to have a monster game but he was pretty anonymous. However, I knew that there was no way that the likes of Kroos, Modric, Nacho, Dani Carvajal, Lucas Vazquez, etc. would let that final slip through their fingers. I knew it would be one of those senior players that would make the difference. They'd been through so many nail-biters previously, so many last-gasp scenarios, only to come out on top, there was no chance they'd let Dortmund snatch the title.

Mourinho has a concept he calls football heritage. It's essentially what people mean when they talk about the impact of the history of a club - the culture, experiences, beliefs, and intrinsic knowledge that gets passed along over time within a dressing room, from one generation of players through to the next. And that's how they always find a way. It's one thing to say, "Madrid never gives up." It's another thing to work alongside legends of the game day by day, have them show you over and over and over that the impossible is achievable, and then live it out yourself.

I remember an interview where Xavi said Barcelona has this psychological thing where they have to be the better team in order to win clasicos. They can't win if they're not actually playing the better football. Man City are likely the best team in the world, built off of Barcelona DNA, but (probably as a result) they don't win gritty. They also need to be the best team on the day to win. Madrid don't.

Also, spare a thought for Andriy Lunin. Courtois was injured for 95% of the season, and the then-backup goalkeeper became third-choice when Kepa got brought in on loan. But Lunin fought for his place, earned the starting spot, and was truly fantastic all season. He made so many clutch saves throughout, I thought it was a real shame he didn't get the opportunity to play in the final. Still, Courtois was man of the match for me, so it's hard to argue with him getting the nod.