On June 6, a little past seven in the evening, the stands of Estádio do Dragão were already packed.
Porto's home ground had a total capacity of fifty-two thousand seats, and tonight, the stadium had been divided into two clear colors.
One side was filled with Real Madrid supporters in white shirts, while the other side belonged to Manchester City fans in sky blue.
The Galactic Battleship and the Blue Moon were about to meet in the biggest match of the European club season!
The Champions League final would officially begin in ten minutes.
Inside the players' tunnel, the Real Madrid and Manchester City players were chatting pleasantly.
The relationship between the two sides seemed fairly good before the match, with several players greeting one another, exchanging smiles, and keeping the atmosphere calm before the tension of the final truly arrived.
A few minutes later, the captains of Manchester City and Real Madrid led their players onto the pitch at Estádio do Dragão.
At that moment, Madrid fans and City fans began singing their own club songs.
Hala Madrid and Blue Moon echoed above the stadium, mixing with the noise of drums, flags, and tens of thousands of supporters waiting for the first whistle.
"Welcome, football fans, to the 2020–21 Champions League final," Rob Palmer announced.
"Manchester City against Real Madrid, Guardiola against Zidane, and one of the greatest club prizes in world football waiting at the end of the night."
"This is a fascinating matchup," Terry Gibson said. "Real Madrid have had a perfect domestic season and arrived here chasing a historic campaign, while Manchester City have been brilliant in England and now want the Champions League trophy that has avoided them for so long."
The players of both teams had already taken their positions in their respective halves.
"Let's take a look at the starting lineups," Rob continued. "For Real Madrid, Zidane has gone with a 4-5-1 shape. Courtois starts in goal, with Carvajal, Varane, Ramos, and Marcelo across the back line. In midfield, Madrid have Ødegaard, Toni Kroos, Casemiro, Modrić, and Theodore Bjorn, while Benzema leads the line as the lone striker."
"The key detail is Theodore's position," Terry added. "He starts slightly toward the left side, which gives him the chance to cut inside onto his right foot and attack central areas. Zidane clearly wants him close enough to midfield to help Madrid escape pressure, but also high enough to threaten City on the counter."
"As for Manchester City, Guardiola has selected a 4-3-3," Rob said. "Ederson starts in goal. The back four are Zinchenko, Rúben Dias, John Stones, and Kyle Walker. In midfield, City have Gündoğan, Rodri, and Bernardo Silva, with Foden, De Bruyne, and Mahrez forming the front three."
"It is a false-nine setup from Guardiola," Terry explained. "De Bruyne may be listed centrally, but City's attackers will rotate constantly. Foden, Mahrez, Bernardo, and De Bruyne can all move between the lines, and Madrid's defenders will need to communicate extremely well."
On the livestream comments, fans were eagerly waiting for the match to begin.
📱 @TheodoreEra ✔
Hurry up and start. I can't wait anymore. Madrid must win tonight.
| ↳ 📱 @Madrid_Insider
| Reply: Come on, Theodore. Score more goals!
📱 @FootballLive ✔
Both teams have basically sent out their strongest lineups. This Champions League final should be incredible.
| ↳ 📱 @WhiteShirtFaithful
| Reply: I have a feeling Madrid are going to destroy City tonight, but I won't say too much because I don't want to jinx it.
📱 @CityzensAsia ✔
City are strong enough to beat anyone. Guardiola just needs to keep it simple and not overthink the final.
| ↳ 📱 @UCLNeutralWatch
| Reply: Theodore against City's midfield press is the matchup I'm watching most!
At 7:30 p.m. local time, the referee blew the whistle to start the Champions League final.
Real Madrid kicked off first.
Benzema immediately passed the ball into midfield for Theodore.
However, in the next second, Rodri and Bernardo Silva rushed toward Theodore together, trying to steal the ball from his feet before he could turn.
Seeing the pressure arrive so quickly, Theodore did not force the issue and immediately passed the ball to Toni Kroos.
At this point, two Manchester City players had already been dragged toward Theodore, which meant there should have been a numerical gap in City's central defensive structure. For Madrid, this looked like a good attacking opportunity.
However, Kroos did not choose to pass forward.
Instead, he played the ball backward to Ramos in the defensive line.
Before this match began, Zidane had repeatedly emphasized that the team had to prioritize defense, especially in the first half.
Madrid could afford to spend time looking for chances, but they absolutely could not concede early.
Clearly, Kroos perfectly carried out Zidane's tactical instruction and refused to launch a reckless attack.
After that, the match entered a phase of positional play.
Because Manchester City did not have a traditional center-forward, their three attacking players up front could drop back into midfield at any moment to help defend and create numerical superiority.
Once the match fell into this kind of positional battle, Madrid's players did not have many good chances to progress the ball cleanly.
Before long, City defensive midfielder Rodri stole the ball from Casemiro's feet.
After winning possession, Rodri immediately looked up and sent a long pass toward Foden on the left flank.
As Manchester City's young prince, Foden had clearly improved this season and had already become an indispensable part of Guardiola's tactical system.
At this moment, the young Foden faced a direct duel with veteran full-back Carvajal.
Carvajal quickly rushed in front of him.
However, Foden did not choose to force a breakthrough. Instead, he crossed directly with his left foot, sweeping the ball dangerously across the face of goal.
Courtois rushed out decisively. Before De Bruyne could reach the ball, the Real Madrid goalkeeper punched it away with both fists.
The only pity was that Courtois did not clear the ball far enough.
Near the top of the penalty arc, Bernardo Silva received the loose ball.
Just as Bernardo was about to unleash a powerful shot, Modrić slid in from behind and brought him down.
"Beep!"
The referee immediately blew his whistle.
Perhaps because only seven minutes had passed, the referee did not show Modrić a yellow card for the foul.
However, Manchester City had earned a set piece in an excellent position.
The foul was only twenty-three meters from goal.
In the stands of Estádio do Dragão, tens of thousands of Manchester City fans began shouting De Bruyne's name.
As one of the best midfielders in the world, De Bruyne definitely had the technique to score directly from a free kick.
Although his number of free-kick goals could not be compared with Theodore's, this position still gave him plenty of confidence.
Especially since the goalkeeper standing in front of him was Courtois.
That made De Bruyne want to score even more.
De Bruyne and Courtois were both members of the Belgium national team, but because of a woman, these two world-class stars had become enemies.
"This is a dangerous position," Rob Palmer said. "De Bruyne is standing over it, and from this range, he absolutely has the quality to test Courtois."
"The angle suits him," Terry Gibson noted. "If he can get it around the wall with enough pace, Courtois will have a very difficult save to make."
A few seconds later, the referee blew the whistle.
De Bruyne struck the ball quickly with his right foot.
The ball curved like a crescent blade, bending around Madrid's wall as it raced toward Real Madrid's goal.
On the goal line, the two-meter-tall Courtois had already stretched his body as far as he could, but De Bruyne's shot still flew into the net.
Manchester City had scored first.
The score was now 1–0!
"De Bruyne scores!" Rob Palmer shouted. "A brilliant free kick from the Manchester City captain, and City lead Real Madrid after only seven minutes in the Champions League final."
"That is a superb strike," Terry Gibson said. "Courtois gets across, but De Bruyne bends it around the wall with enough pace and accuracy to beat him. For Manchester City, this is the perfect start."
"Real Madrid have not quite found the rhythm of this final yet," Rob continued. "They began cautiously, City pressed them high, and now Zidane's side are already chasing the game."
The Manchester City section of the stadium erupted instantly.
Sky-blue shirts rose from their seats, flags waved wildly, and City supporters shouted De Bruyne's name with full force.
On the touchline, Guardiola clenched his fists and celebrated, though he quickly turned back toward his players and gestured for them to stay calm.
He knew very well that scoring first against Madrid was only the beginning.
Against a team led by Theodore Bjorn, one goal was far from enough.
On the other side, Zidane stood with his arms folded, his expression serious.
Madrid had started conservatively because he wanted to avoid giving City space in the opening stages, but the early free kick had broken that plan almost immediately.
"Madrid are playing very conservatively today," Terry Gibson said. "They have been sitting deeper than usual and trying to control the risk, but that approach has made it difficult for them to get Theodore into dangerous positions."
"And now they need a response," Rob added. "The question is whether Zidane asks them to stay patient or whether Madrid begin pushing higher earlier than planned."
On the pitch, Theodore stood near the halfway line and looked toward De Bruyne, who was still being congratulated by his teammates.
His expression did not change much.
The final had only just begun, and Manchester City had landed the first punch.
But for Real Madrid, the match was far from over.