Sergio Ramos shares what happened in the build up to the 2016 Champions League final.
The captain of the Los Blancos described how the victory on the fourth anniversary of their triumph in Milan over rivals Atletico Madrid was achieved- on penalties.
Over the years, the Real Madrid skipper has adopted the spot-kick in Panenka-style as his own but has explained why he didn’t want to try it in Milan.
“Taking a Panenka-style penalty is a marvellous way to take one when it comes to taking on that risk, but only when people think that you’re not going to do it,” he mentioned to UEFA. “[Jan] Oblak and I had history and we knew each other well and it wasn’t the ideal time to do it. The ball ultimately ended up in the back of the net, which was the main thing”.
While being buddies with several of the Atletico players, Ramos admitted that after the dramatic shootout he didn’t speak to any of them before the game but consoled some of them.
“I didn’t speak to any of the Atletico players that I know from the Spanish national team before the game, the likes of Juanfran, Koke and Fernando Torres,” he stated.
“We were all really focused and there was no time to speak to each other because there was a lot at stake.
“After the game, I went to speak to all of their team and offered them words of encouragement, particularly Juanfran.
“When you miss a penalty, you have to become strong and overcome these kinds of things that football throws your way.
“You’ve got to show that fair play with your teammates and help each other out at such times.”
He also revealed Zinedine Zidane’s words prior to the 2016 Champions League final. The French coach inspired the team, leading to their victory.
“Zidane told us that we had to keep our cool and that we had to control and dictate the play and that the chances would gradually come our way,” Ramos said.
“He said that he was proud of us and that the Champions League had to be ours again.”
Ramos finally said they were looking to take advantage of their aerial advantage in the lead up to the game.
“We’re a side that know our strengths and we’d been working on how to do damage through set pieces for a long time,” he stated.
“We’ve got some great headerers of the ball and knew that could work to our advantage. On the goal that made it 1-0, I managed to just get my toe on to the ball to score the goal.”
