Borussia Dortmund will head into the UEFA Champions League Final with a lot of mixed emotions. They will be excited to have made it this far in the competition for the first time since 2013, but at the final whistle, the club will be parting ways with its most loyal player. Marco Reus announced that this season would be his last as part of the Dortmund locker room and since then it has been about helping him get to his first European trophy.
The 35-year-old came into the club as one of the most talented young talents in 2012. In his very first season, the German had an instant impact, scoring 14 league and 4 Champions League goals. His brilliance was one of the big reasons behind Borussia Dortmund’s run to the Finals against Bayern Munich back in 2013. Reus had a big role in the Final as well, he won the penalty for Dortmund, which was taken by Ilkay Gundogan to make the score 1-1. It looked like the all-German final would be determined by a penalty shootout, but Arjen Robben had other ideas as he scored a late winner to help Bayern win the final at Wembley.
Over a decade later, Borussia Dortmund are once again in the final of the tournament at Wembley. Their opponents are the overwhelming favourites- Real Madrid, who will be looking to win their 15th Champions League trophy. However, the Germans will be looking to overcome their past nightmare at Wembley and put in a strong showing against the Los Blancos in the final. It will be a fairytale ending for Marco Reus, who is one of the two active members from the current squad who were part of the team that lost the final in Wembley.
Does Borussia Dortmund have a chance against Real Madrid’s European aura?
Borussia Dortmund have had a disappointing domestic campaign. The team finished fifth in the Bundesliga and failed to make a deep run in the other cup competition. However, they somehow managed to get past the group of death in the Champions League at the top spot and run through some other teams to make it to the final of the Champions League.
While this seems unlikely, there have been teams that won the trophy despite having a poor domestic season. Dortmund would be happy to add their names to the list and win the UCL for the first time since 1997. However, they are up against a Real Madrid team that has a perfect record in the Champions League this season. The Los Blancos are determined to win their 15th UCL trophy and help their own legend Toni Kroos get the deserved farewell from football.
Real have a stellar squad and will be hoping to add to their glory this season by adding a UCL trophy to their name. Vinicius Jr. and Jude Bellingham are already the front runners for the 2024 Ballon d’Or honour. Winning the UCL would have a perfect ring around it and would make their case stronger as compared to the other players.
Dortmund are a well-coached side, but this season they have failed to showcase consistency. They cannot come out flat against a team like Real Madrid as the Spaniards will punish them on all fronts if they see any opening. While the Los Blancos are favourties to win the trophy at Wembley, football is unpredictable and Dortmund have a revenge to fulfil which could fuel them to put their best foot forward against Madrid.
