Barcelona win their 5th Champions League

Barcelona sealed their second treble in 7 years, beating Juventus 1-3 in the 2015 Champions League Final at Olympiastadion in Berlin, Germany. The Catalans have now won their 5 Champions League Trophy, 4 in the last decade alone.

Both teams fielded their strongest possible XI, the only unexpected change coming from Juventus when defender Giorgio Chiellini, a key man in the Juventus defence was injured in training and missed the final.

The match, intense from the first minute till the end saw Juventus cause Barcelona some nervy moments within the first minute itself. The game shifted in favour of the Catalans in just the 4 minute, when Rakitic finished off a lovely move. Messi who swept the ball to Alba on the left guided it to Neymar. The Brazilian waited for Iniesta to make his run who then set up the goal for Rakitic.

Buffon was the busier of the 2 keepers in the first half, with the Catalans dictating the pace. When they increased the pace of their passing, Juventus struggled to cope. While Juventus had a couple of good chances in the first half, Marchisio fired his shots straight at Ter-Stegen.

The second half started the same way it ended in the first. Buffon made a magnificent save as Barcelona countered in a 5 vs 3 scenario. The match changed when some shabby defending allowed Juventus to find space in the Catalan goal keeper’s area. Ter-Stegen parried away Tevez’s initial effort but it fell perfectly for former Real Madrid player, Alvaro Morata who made no mistake in finishing, tying the match in the 55 Minute.

The Bianconeri tried to dominate Barcelona, but failed to break through. The 66 minute saw a penalty shout being waved away as Pogba went down in the box, but the referee waved play on. That play saw the Catalans counter with Messi producing a save from Buffon who could not hold onto the ball. Luis Suarez pounced on the loose ball and the Uruguayan smashed the ball into the net to give the lead back to the Catalans. A couple of minutes later, Jordi Alba intercepted a wayward pass down the left and played it to Neymar who “headed” the ball. It was ruled out as hand-ball by the linesman behind the Juve goal.

The final 15 mins saw a flurry of action with both teams getting close, especially Juventus who threw everything they had as the Catalans tried to run down the clock. The game was finally sealed in extra time when Neymar finished in the 95 Minute as Juventus were caught on the counter. The game sealed.

Barcelona are now the first team to have won the Treble twice, while Juventus have to settle with the Domestic Double. The Catalans now have the chance to become the first team to win the sextuple (they are the only team to have won it) twice.

Barcelona have now won their 5 Champions League trophy and are joint 3 with Bayern Munich and Liverpool in number of wins. Juventus are the only team to have lost 6 finals.