Toni Kroos and Marco Reus live through careers in 90 minutes: Real Madrid wins CL final against BVB

Borussia Dortmund brought Real Madrid to the brink of defeat, but at the end of this Champions League final everything was as usual: Toni Kroos celebrated, Marco Reus had to slink off the pitch defeated. In the 90 minutes at London’s Wembley Stadium, two great careers were condensed into a few moments.

They had imagined it so beautifully at Borussia Dortmund. The substitution of Marco Reus in the 72nd minute was the starting point of one of those stories that perhaps only football, with all its collective power, can write. Mats Hummels reported on ZDF how it should have gone in the best case scenario: that Reus had come onto the pitch in his last game for BVB, and somehow the ball had fallen at his feet at the right moment so that he would have inevitably and logically scored the winning goal in this Champions League final. But the subjunctive reveals that things turned out differently against Real Madrid.

Just two minutes after Reus stepped onto the pitch at Wembley Stadium, the first goal of Saturday evening was scored – but on the other side. For Real Madrid. Assisted by someone whose career could hardly have been more different: Toni Kroos. While Reus was once again bitterly reminded of the label of being forever unfinished by this 2-0 defeat, Kroos became the record winner of the Champions League with the final whistle. It is the sixth title for the 34-year-old, who retires as an icon this summer after ten years with the Royals.

For those who always try to see the bigger picture, the 90 minutes in London were the perfect summary of the very different careers of two German footballers, who both seemed to have the world at their feet from an early age. Here is Reus, who won the DFB Cup twice but was never able to lift the championship trophy or the European Cup and was injured in the last test before the 2014 World Cup. There is Kroos, the seven-time champion and six-time Champions League winner, whose move from FC Bayern to Real Madrid was made official just a few days after the victory in the World Cup final against Argentina – and who is now ending his club career at the peak with his 33rd title.

Everyone wants to hug Kroos

“Thank God it worked,” Kroos said afterwards on ZDF, admitting that a Black and Yellow goal in the first 45 minutes would have been “more than possible” because “the first half was really not good from us.” But Real Madrid is Real Madrid. In big football matches, that means that they will strike at some point, no matter how well or badly things are going up to that point. The last time the Royals lost a European Cup final was in 1981, when Reus and Kroos were not even born, and even Dortmund coach Edin Terzić was not yet born. Since then, Real have played in nine Champions League finals and won them all. Against FC Valencia, against Bayer Leverkusen, and even twice each against Juventus Turin, Atlético Madrid and FC Liverpool.

And now against Borussia Dortmund. Because BVB were unable to reflect their superiority in the score. Because goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois once again saved everything that could be saved in a final. And because Toni Kroos delivered the corner so perfectly in front of the goal in that 74th minute that Dani Carvajal was able to head the ball in to make it 1-0. The 1.73-metre man had shaken off his opponent Ian Maatsen and even Niclas Füllkrug and Mats Hummels could no longer prevent the seemingly inevitable from taking its course: that Real would once again win a major final, while Dortmund would lose such a final for the third time this millennium after 2002 (UEFA Cup against Feyenoord Rotterdam) and 2013 (CL against FC Bayern).

“The title means an incredible amount to me,” said Kroos afterwards, who was celebrated by the fans when he was substituted and given a warm hug by coach Carlo Ancelotti: “Of course I wanted to say goodbye with this Champions League victory.” The big farewell scenes had already taken place last weekend at the Santiago Bernabéu, which Kroos found “very, very special” and had therefore invested a lot of work “to focus on this game. [gegen den BVB] The subsequent chants of “Toni, Toni” showed how well he had succeeded. Around the Real bench, everyone wanted to hug the midfield strategist one more time, and at the final whistle the cameras showed Kroos and the long-term injured David Alaba in an intimate, joyful exchange.

After the substitution of Reus, the final is overturned

“He couldn’t have stopped better. He’s playing at the highest level,” said Ancelotti, summing up what Kroos has achieved not only that evening at Wembley, but in his ten seasons for the Royals. “He is a legend in this club. All Real Madrid fans are grateful for what he has done for this club.” The 465th game in the iconic white jersey was his last, in which he won almost as many titles (23) as he scored goals (28). The legendary Bayern of the 1970s, including Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Müller and Sepp Maier, held the unofficial German record in this respect for a long time with their three victories in the European Cup. Kroos has now won the highest European club competition twice as often as any other German footballer.

While the smile on the face of the Madrid number 8 seemed to be barely leaving his face, Dortmund’s number 11 chose a quiet farewell. Marco Reus avoided appearing in front of the microphones, perhaps wanting to be alone with his disappointment and all the other feelings. The story that Hummels & Co. had designed had not worked out, as sports director Sebastian Kehl summed up: “Unfortunately, it was his last game for Dortmund today. We couldn’t have wished for anything better than to hold up the trophy with him, he would have deserved it.” But this final tipped over shortly after Reus was substituted on, continuing his tragic story of painful setbacks in big moments.

“It took a long time before we were the better team,” Kroos said afterwards, describing one of Real Madrid’s greatest qualities. The Royal team rarely overrun their opponents, but rather drive them ahead of them for a long time and then strike at the decisive moments. The first time was when Kroos placed the corner perfectly and the second time when a catastrophic bad pass from Jude Bellingham opened up a 2-on-1 situation around 25 meters from the BVB goal. The 20-year-old ex-Dortmund player played the ball past Hummels to Vinicius Junior – and threw his arms in the air in joy before the Brazilian had finished the 2-0 (83′) into the far corner.

Kroos is still missing one title…

Kroos was substituted shortly afterwards to great applause, raised his fists in celebration and was given his grand exit. Borussia tried hard again, but was unable to seriously threaten Real; Füllkrug was clearly offside when they thought they could score a goal in the 87th minute. And so Reus, one of the defeated, chose to leave quietly. Where he will continue his career is still open; after stints in Dortmund, Mönchengladbach and Ahlen, it seems he will be moving out of North Rhine-Westphalia for the first time, and even out of Germany.

Kroos, meanwhile, will be returning to Germany in the next few days to achieve his second big goal of the season after his perfect finish at Real Madrid. The national team is eagerly awaiting the 34-year-old, whose surprising comeback in March – combined with victories against France and the Netherlands – has boosted many a black, red and gold team’s hopes of winning the European Championship at home.

The Henri Delaunay Cup, the trophy for the European champions, is one of the very few that Kroos has not yet won. So next week in Herzogenaurach could be the beginning of one of those great stories that perhaps only football can write.