Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 1
Real Madrid Ramos 15'
Atletico Madrid Carrasco 79'
Real Madrid win on penalties 5-3
A select group of doubly successful footballing folk have a little more company in their elite band.
It is now a magnificent seven: Miguel Muñoz, Giovanni Trapattoni, Johan Cruyff, Carlo Ancelotti, Frank Rijkaard and Pep Guardiola have been joined by Zinedine Zidane.
Half a season into his first campaign of top-flight management, Zidane has joined the luminaries who have win the Uefa Champions League as player and coach.
The man who delivered Real Madrid's ninth European Cup, with the spectacular volley against Bayer Leverkusen in 2002, oversaw the 11th. Atletico Madrid were beaten and a derby decided under the auspices of comparative novice.
Diego Simeone may have been the outstanding manager of the last three years in the Champions League, but he has twice been denied the ultimate vindication by Real. Atletico’s wait to become officially Europe’s best team is extended, just as their neighbours claimed that distinction yet again.
The Spanish capital’s privileged side saw off its comparative paupers. They did so with a rookie in the dugout.
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At half-time, it felt they were winning because of him. By the time Cristiano Ronaldo slotted in the decisive penalty, it was possible to argue they triumphed in spite of him.
But the reality is they won. Zidane is a Champions League-winning manager.
Simeone still is not. Atletico Madrid may go down as the greatest team of their generation not to conquer Europe. Juanfran’s scuffed spot kick ensured as much. Simeone was outmanoeuvred by Zidane in the first half, outstanding thereafter.
Atletico, a team noted for their ferocious intensity, were strangely muted before the break. A fearless team appeared a little intimidated. It was a performance that felt out of character. But they were resoundingly, remorselessly purposeful thereafter.
Simeone changed shape, from 4-4-2 to 4-3-3. A change of personnel helped, too. The man he brought on, Yannick Carrasco, scored the equaliser. He assumed a status as the game’s most incisive runner, which was no mean feat given Gareth Bale’s display.
Photo gallery: Cristiano Ronaldo hits winner and Real Madrid hoist Uefa Champions League trophy
After his arrival, Atletico grew into the game, outrunning Real. They out-blocked them, too, getting their body in the way of shots. They showed coherence, collective commitment and character.
They illustrated they can bridge the gap in budget and talent. They do so with fitness and a formidable mentality. At times, this felt like teamwork versus individualism with Real hoping for one moment of inspiration from one garlanded player and Atletico banking on the power of the collective.
Real looked tired. Zidane erred by taking off Toni Kroos. A semi-fit Ronaldo was left on for the whole 120 minutes, a decision that looked wiser when he scored the last penalty in the shootout. Real held their nerve.
For Atletico, it amounted to a third cruel ending. They were seconds from becoming European Cup winners in both 1974 and 2014, only to be denied by last-gasp equalisers from Bayern Munich and Real.
On this occasion, they conceded an offside goal, to Sergio Ramos, who is assuming a status as Atletico’s nemesis, and missed a penalty in regulation time, courtesy of Antoine Griezmann.
They have only actually lost one of the last 11 Madrid derbies in 90 minutes, but have gone out of the Champions League three years in a row to their neighbours. They even did much of the hard work to render Real champions, knocking out Barcelona and Bayern.
They left Real looking second best for long periods, but they can now claim to be the continent’s finest.
Is that because of Zidane? Certainly a purveyor of the beautiful game is not reflected in a more pragmatic side. Yet there is a nod to his past.
Casemiro is emerging as the modern Claude Makelele, the selfless holding midfielder who gives the Galacticos the platform to play and the team the balance it requires. Rafa Benitez recognised as much, even if president Florentino Perez was reluctant to accept his opinion.
Zidane, Makelele’s former teammate, seems to have recognised something of his old ally in the unflashy Brazilian. Together with Bale, he was Real’s finest performer in Milan.
And that gave Zidane another distinction: Champions League-winning manager.
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