For one brief moment, you wondered if it might happen again. With eight minutes to go between the clubs who have won this competition more than anyone else, and Real Madrid 3-1 down, Antonio Rüdiger guided a shot into the net that might have been a bugle call, a call to arms, madness gripping this place again and ushering in yet another wild finale. This time though there was no comeback and no epic, only reality. Justice too. Rüdiger had been offside, the goal was ruled out and Milan got a victory they had throughly deserved.
Goals from Malick Thiaw, the exceptional Tijjani Reijnders and the Spain captain Álvaro Morata – of course – secured a victory Milan badly needed and inflicted Madrid’s first Champions League defeat here since Chelsea won 3-2 in April 2022. Even then they had come back and progressed, ending the season as one of the most miraculous champions in memory. Here there was no such luck, no such reaction either. No noise, no revival, and no complaint. Not from the players, at least.
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