Morata, unwanted at Real Madrid despite winning the European Cup with him, has now made his club pay twice: in the first leg he got Juventus’ opening goal; on Wednesday he snapped the critical tying goal right through Iker Casillas from close range. Morata has declined to celebrate openly against his old team, with regrets surely now felt on both sides. Real sold him for $30m, only to see him come back and bury a dagger in their backs tonight, and it is hard to feel that the unwanted Morata will have a bittersweet feeling about his role tonight.
"We have fought so hard to get here, but this does not end now," Morata told reporters after the match. "We want to win the final and make history."
Played in witheringly hot conditions, Madrid looked far more settled and comfortable on the day than they had in Turin last week, when a drilled and organized Juve side stunned them 2-1. Ronaldo had snatched a lifeline for Madrid in that game, sinking a late goal off a fabulous lob from James Rodriguez, and today los merengues built on that with a storming performance out of the gate.
And Gareth Bale, so often criticized during his tenure with Madrid, nearly got the match off to a dream start when he connected on a long pass from Marcelo but was only able to head it over the bar. Bale would also have two other key plays in the first half, forcing keeper Gigi Buffon into a sprawling stop off a lash from 30 yards out, and then a great cross-field pass that nearly set Ronaldo up for his second of the night, a shot that was instead blown into the side net.
But the key player for Madrid early would prove to be Karim Benzema: his surging runs took defender Stephan Lichtsteiner completely out of the first half, and directly led to the opening goal. Benzema would torture the defender, at one point putting him on the floor, only to see an uncharacteristically unselfish Ronaldo opt to pass to Isco rather than shoot.
When Ronaldo and James combined in the 23rd minute, Lichtsteiner was the man beat on the play, forcing Giorgio Chiellini to move in clumsily on James, clipping his calf. Ref Jonas Eriksson had no hesitation about pointing to the spot, and Ronaldo cooly blew the ensuing penalty kick right down the middle past Buffon.
Who saw this coming? The Real Madrid fans look on with glum expressions. James Rodriguez is inconsolable. He’s in tears. It’s all gone very wrong for the holders in the past week. They’re out of the Champions League and the league title is slipping out of their grasp too. Oh dear. Maybe they should spend some more money? That’ll do it. They’ll be after a new manager too. This defeat effectively serves as Carlo Ancelotti’s resignation letter. But tonight isn’t about Real Madrid, it’s about Juventus. They struggled in the first half and they could have been out of it by half-time, but they were outstanding in the second half. Their defence was superb. Buffon. Can he really be 37? Vidal, Pogba and Marchisio were tireless, Tevez a totem of strength in attack. And, oh, what an ironic matchwinner. Alvaro Morata has knocked his old club out. Remember Fernando Morientes. Real never learn, do they? Ah well. Congratulations, Juventus. Lionel Messi is waiting for you in Berlin. Thanks for reading and emailing. Night!