On 29 July 2018, Geraint Thomas pumped his fist and crossed the finish line on the Champs-Élysées to complete a historic triumph in the Tour de France. Never before had a Welshman tasted victory in cycling’s most prestigious race, his feat marked by a rapturous homecoming in Cardiff. A month later, the celebrations continued as the Welsh National Velodrome was renamed in his honour – but what if they had actually plumped for the wrong man? What if Thomas’ famous win wasn’t the biggest Welsh cycling miracle of 2018? What if that had come in mid-air above a football pitch in Kyiv? Welcome, instead, to the Gareth Bale National Velodrome.
Bale didn’t start the 2018 Champions League final expecting to achieve a high-wire fusion of two different sports. He wasn’t sure he’d get on the turf at all. The Wales legend may have joined Real Madrid in 2013 as the most expensive footballer in history, but five years later a series of injuries had blunted his influence. The once feared BBC front line of Bale, Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo had effectively collapsed, the trio not starting a single Champions League game together in 2017/18. Bale himself had started just three, and though he had worked his way back to fitness by the time of the final, the team sheet hit like a hammer: Zinédine Zidane had chosen Isco to support Ronaldo and Benzema. For Bale, a seat on the bench awaited.
Both player and coach had reasons to feel frustrated. Bale because of his recent form, having buried five goals in his last four league games before the showdown with Liverpool. Zidane due to a perceived inability to rely on his gifted No11. And this was no time to take risks, with Madrid hoping to secure a third consecutive Champions League title and Zizou in line to become the first coach to win three in a row. Not bad for a man who had already earned his place in European Cup lore as the scorer of the greatest final goal after his astonishing volley for Madrid against Bayer Leverkusen in 2002. Greatest so far, anyway.
Madrid’s grip on the trophy was far from tight as the hour mark approached at the NSC Olimpiyskiy. Liverpool had lost danger man Mohamed Salah to a shoulder injury, but the Reds enjoyed the better first-half chances and did not wilt when Benzema broke the deadlock after 51 minutes, the Frenchman sticking out a leg to send a throw from goalkeeper Loris Karius trickling into the net. Sadio Mané’s quick reactions from a corner swiftly levelled the score, and Zidane was left to ponder his options, looking for a spark to re-establish control. With 61 minutes gone, up went the board: Isco off, Bale on.
For the moment of magic that would follow just 122 seconds later, we apparently have Mané to thank. That’s according to Marcelo, the Madrid full-back who collected a pass from Casemiro out wide on the left as the holders advanced. Switching the ball to his right foot, Marcelo spotted all three BBC stars lurking in the area and lofted in a cross. To the naked eye, it looked as if he had mishit the delivery, wafting it too far behind his team-mates. In the Brazilian’s telling, the ball brushed against Mané’s boot as the Liverpool forward lunged in, altering its flight.
Bale was unfazed. The closest Madrid player to the incoming cross, he seemed to make up his mind immediately, turning his back to goal and stepping out to meet it. The ball was still some distance in front of him, but with a vault into the air and a furious pedal of his left foot, he conjured a bicycle kick that managed to look both natural and unnatural – as graceful as it was preposterous as the ball whooshed back over his head on a majestic arc that sailed high beyond Karius and dipped into the top corner. Bale went on to score again, hitting a long-range effort that squirmed through Karius’ hands, but there was no mistaking the goal of the night. Of the season. Of probably any European Cup final ever.
Zidane’s immaculate volley from 2002 had been surpassed, but the Madrid boss could at least console himself with the 3-1 victory – and a new, unofficial prize for the best coaching reaction to any final goal. Almost as memorable as Bale’s acrobatic strike, Zidane was captured by the cameras resting a hand on his shiny dome in shock, his mouth then hanging open and shaking his hand back and forth as if he’d just touched a hot stove. From the great man himself, this was the ultimate validation – a goal even Zizou could scarcely believe, and it had come on the grandest stage of all. Forget the Tour de France. This was a tour de force that will stun and stagger for decades.
On 29 July 2018, Geraint Thomas pumped his fist and crossed the finish line on the Champs-Élysées to complete a historic triumph in the Tour de France. Never before had a Welshman tasted victory in cycling’s most prestigious race, his feat marked by a rapturous homecoming in Cardiff. A month later, the celebrations continued as the Welsh National Velodrome was renamed in his honour – but what if they had actually plumped for the wrong man? What if Thomas’ famous win wasn’t the biggest Welsh cycling miracle of 2018? What if that had come in mid-air above a football pitch in Kyiv? Welcome, instead, to the Gareth Bale National Velodrome.
Bale didn’t start the 2018 Champions League final expecting to achieve a high-wire fusion of two different sports. He wasn’t sure he’d get on the turf at all. The Wales legend may have joined Real Madrid in 2013 as the most expensive footballer in history, but five years later a series of injuries had blunted his influence. The once feared BBC front line of Bale, Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo had effectively collapsed, the trio not starting a single Champions League game together in 2017/18. Bale himself had started just three, and though he had worked his way back to fitness by the time of the final, the team sheet hit like a hammer: Zinédine Zidane had chosen Isco to support Ronaldo and Benzema. For Bale, a seat on the bench awaited.
Both player and coach had reasons to feel frustrated. Bale because of his recent form, having buried five goals in his last four league games before the showdown with Liverpool. Zidane due to a perceived inability to rely on his gifted No11. And this was no time to take risks, with Madrid hoping to secure a third consecutive Champions League title and Zizou in line to become the first coach to win three in a row. Not bad for a man who had already earned his place in European Cup lore as the scorer of the greatest final goal after his astonishing volley for Madrid against Bayer Leverkusen in 2002. Greatest so far, anyway.
Madrid’s grip on the trophy was far from tight as the hour mark approached at the NSC Olimpiyskiy. Liverpool had lost danger man Mohamed Salah to a shoulder injury, but the Reds enjoyed the better first-half chances and did not wilt when Benzema broke the deadlock after 51 minutes, the Frenchman sticking out a leg to send a throw from goalkeeper Loris Karius trickling into the net. Sadio Mané’s quick reactions from a corner swiftly levelled the score, and Zidane was left to ponder his options, looking for a spark to re-establish control. With 61 minutes gone, up went the board: Isco off, Bale on.
For the moment of magic that would follow just 122 seconds later, we apparently have Mané to thank. That’s according to Marcelo, the Madrid full-back who collected a pass from Casemiro out wide on the left as the holders advanced. Switching the ball to his right foot, Marcelo spotted all three BBC stars lurking in the area and lofted in a cross. To the naked eye, it looked as if he had mishit the delivery, wafting it too far behind his team-mates. In the Brazilian’s telling, the ball brushed against Mané’s boot as the Liverpool forward lunged in, altering its flight.
Bale was unfazed. The closest Madrid player to the incoming cross, he seemed to make up his mind immediately, turning his back to goal and stepping out to meet it. The ball was still some distance in front of him, but with a vault into the air and a furious pedal of his left foot, he conjured a bicycle kick that managed to look both natural and unnatural – as graceful as it was preposterous as the ball whooshed back over his head on a majestic arc that sailed high beyond Karius and dipped into the top corner. Bale went on to score again, hitting a long-range effort that squirmed through Karius’ hands, but there was no mistaking the goal of the night. Of the season. Of probably any European Cup final ever.
Zidane’s immaculate volley from 2002 had been surpassed, but the Madrid boss could at least console himself with the 3-1 victory – and a new, unofficial prize for the best coaching reaction to any final goal. Almost as memorable as Bale’s acrobatic strike, Zidane was captured by the cameras resting a hand on his shiny dome in shock, his mouth then hanging open and shaking his hand back and forth as if he’d just touched a hot stove. From the great man himself, this was the ultimate validation – a goal even Zizou could scarcely believe, and it had come on the grandest stage of all. Forget the Tour de France. This was a tour de force that will stun and stagger for decades.
On 29 July 2018, Geraint Thomas pumped his fist and crossed the finish line on the Champs-Élysées to complete a historic triumph in the Tour de France. Never before had a Welshman tasted victory in cycling’s most prestigious race, his feat marked by a rapturous homecoming in Cardiff. A month later, the celebrations continued as the Welsh National Velodrome was renamed in his honour – but what if they had actually plumped for the wrong man? What if Thomas’ famous win wasn’t the biggest Welsh cycling miracle of 2018? What if that had come in mid-air above a football pitch in Kyiv? Welcome, instead, to the Gareth Bale National Velodrome.
Bale didn’t start the 2018 Champions League final expecting to achieve a high-wire fusion of two different sports. He wasn’t sure he’d get on the turf at all. The Wales legend may have joined Real Madrid in 2013 as the most expensive footballer in history, but five years later a series of injuries had blunted his influence. The once feared BBC front line of Bale, Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo had effectively collapsed, the trio not starting a single Champions League game together in 2017/18. Bale himself had started just three, and though he had worked his way back to fitness by the time of the final, the team sheet hit like a hammer: Zinédine Zidane had chosen Isco to support Ronaldo and Benzema. For Bale, a seat on the bench awaited.
Both player and coach had reasons to feel frustrated. Bale because of his recent form, having buried five goals in his last four league games before the showdown with Liverpool. Zidane due to a perceived inability to rely on his gifted No11. And this was no time to take risks, with Madrid hoping to secure a third consecutive Champions League title and Zizou in line to become the first coach to win three in a row. Not bad for a man who had already earned his place in European Cup lore as the scorer of the greatest final goal after his astonishing volley for Madrid against Bayer Leverkusen in 2002. Greatest so far, anyway.
Madrid’s grip on the trophy was far from tight as the hour mark approached at the NSC Olimpiyskiy. Liverpool had lost danger man Mohamed Salah to a shoulder injury, but the Reds enjoyed the better first-half chances and did not wilt when Benzema broke the deadlock after 51 minutes, the Frenchman sticking out a leg to send a throw from goalkeeper Loris Karius trickling into the net. Sadio Mané’s quick reactions from a corner swiftly levelled the score, and Zidane was left to ponder his options, looking for a spark to re-establish control. With 61 minutes gone, up went the board: Isco off, Bale on.
For the moment of magic that would follow just 122 seconds later, we apparently have Mané to thank. That’s according to Marcelo, the Madrid full-back who collected a pass from Casemiro out wide on the left as the holders advanced. Switching the ball to his right foot, Marcelo spotted all three BBC stars lurking in the area and lofted in a cross. To the naked eye, it looked as if he had mishit the delivery, wafting it too far behind his team-mates. In the Brazilian’s telling, the ball brushed against Mané’s boot as the Liverpool forward lunged in, altering its flight.
Bale was unfazed. The closest Madrid player to the incoming cross, he seemed to make up his mind immediately, turning his back to goal and stepping out to meet it. The ball was still some distance in front of him, but with a vault into the air and a furious pedal of his left foot, he conjured a bicycle kick that managed to look both natural and unnatural – as graceful as it was preposterous as the ball whooshed back over his head on a majestic arc that sailed high beyond Karius and dipped into the top corner. Bale went on to score again, hitting a long-range effort that squirmed through Karius’ hands, but there was no mistaking the goal of the night. Of the season. Of probably any European Cup final ever.
Zidane’s immaculate volley from 2002 had been surpassed, but the Madrid boss could at least console himself with the 3-1 victory – and a new, unofficial prize for the best coaching reaction to any final goal. Almost as memorable as Bale’s acrobatic strike, Zidane was captured by the cameras resting a hand on his shiny dome in shock, his mouth then hanging open and shaking his hand back and forth as if he’d just touched a hot stove. From the great man himself, this was the ultimate validation – a goal even Zizou could scarcely believe, and it had come on the grandest stage of all. Forget the Tour de France. This was a tour de force that will stun and stagger for decades.
On 29 July 2018, Geraint Thomas pumped his fist and crossed the finish line on the Champs-Élysées to complete a historic triumph in the Tour de France. Never before had a Welshman tasted victory in cycling’s most prestigious race, his feat marked by a rapturous homecoming in Cardiff. A month later, the celebrations continued as the Welsh National Velodrome was renamed in his honour – but what if they had actually plumped for the wrong man? What if Thomas’ famous win wasn’t the biggest Welsh cycling miracle of 2018? What if that had come in mid-air above a football pitch in Kyiv? Welcome, instead, to the Gareth Bale National Velodrome.
Bale didn’t start the 2018 Champions League final expecting to achieve a high-wire fusion of two different sports. He wasn’t sure he’d get on the turf at all. The Wales legend may have joined Real Madrid in 2013 as the most expensive footballer in history, but five years later a series of injuries had blunted his influence. The once feared BBC front line of Bale, Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo had effectively collapsed, the trio not starting a single Champions League game together in 2017/18. Bale himself had started just three, and though he had worked his way back to fitness by the time of the final, the team sheet hit like a hammer: Zinédine Zidane had chosen Isco to support Ronaldo and Benzema. For Bale, a seat on the bench awaited.
Both player and coach had reasons to feel frustrated. Bale because of his recent form, having buried five goals in his last four league games before the showdown with Liverpool. Zidane due to a perceived inability to rely on his gifted No11. And this was no time to take risks, with Madrid hoping to secure a third consecutive Champions League title and Zizou in line to become the first coach to win three in a row. Not bad for a man who had already earned his place in European Cup lore as the scorer of the greatest final goal after his astonishing volley for Madrid against Bayer Leverkusen in 2002. Greatest so far, anyway.
Madrid’s grip on the trophy was far from tight as the hour mark approached at the NSC Olimpiyskiy. Liverpool had lost danger man Mohamed Salah to a shoulder injury, but the Reds enjoyed the better first-half chances and did not wilt when Benzema broke the deadlock after 51 minutes, the Frenchman sticking out a leg to send a throw from goalkeeper Loris Karius trickling into the net. Sadio Mané’s quick reactions from a corner swiftly levelled the score, and Zidane was left to ponder his options, looking for a spark to re-establish control. With 61 minutes gone, up went the board: Isco off, Bale on.
For the moment of magic that would follow just 122 seconds later, we apparently have Mané to thank. That’s according to Marcelo, the Madrid full-back who collected a pass from Casemiro out wide on the left as the holders advanced. Switching the ball to his right foot, Marcelo spotted all three BBC stars lurking in the area and lofted in a cross. To the naked eye, it looked as if he had mishit the delivery, wafting it too far behind his team-mates. In the Brazilian’s telling, the ball brushed against Mané’s boot as the Liverpool forward lunged in, altering its flight.
Bale was unfazed. The closest Madrid player to the incoming cross, he seemed to make up his mind immediately, turning his back to goal and stepping out to meet it. The ball was still some distance in front of him, but with a vault into the air and a furious pedal of his left foot, he conjured a bicycle kick that managed to look both natural and unnatural – as graceful as it was preposterous as the ball whooshed back over his head on a majestic arc that sailed high beyond Karius and dipped into the top corner. Bale went on to score again, hitting a long-range effort that squirmed through Karius’ hands, but there was no mistaking the goal of the night. Of the season. Of probably any European Cup final ever.
Zidane’s immaculate volley from 2002 had been surpassed, but the Madrid boss could at least console himself with the 3-1 victory – and a new, unofficial prize for the best coaching reaction to any final goal. Almost as memorable as Bale’s acrobatic strike, Zidane was captured by the cameras resting a hand on his shiny dome in shock, his mouth then hanging open and shaking his hand back and forth as if he’d just touched a hot stove. From the great man himself, this was the ultimate validation – a goal even Zizou could scarcely believe, and it had come on the grandest stage of all. Forget the Tour de France. This was a tour de force that will stun and stagger for decades.
On 29 July 2018, Geraint Thomas pumped his fist and crossed the finish line on the Champs-Élysées to complete a historic triumph in the Tour de France. Never before had a Welshman tasted victory in cycling’s most prestigious race, his feat marked by a rapturous homecoming in Cardiff. A month later, the celebrations continued as the Welsh National Velodrome was renamed in his honour – but what if they had actually plumped for the wrong man? What if Thomas’ famous win wasn’t the biggest Welsh cycling miracle of 2018? What if that had come in mid-air above a football pitch in Kyiv? Welcome, instead, to the Gareth Bale National Velodrome.
Bale didn’t start the 2018 Champions League final expecting to achieve a high-wire fusion of two different sports. He wasn’t sure he’d get on the turf at all. The Wales legend may have joined Real Madrid in 2013 as the most expensive footballer in history, but five years later a series of injuries had blunted his influence. The once feared BBC front line of Bale, Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo had effectively collapsed, the trio not starting a single Champions League game together in 2017/18. Bale himself had started just three, and though he had worked his way back to fitness by the time of the final, the team sheet hit like a hammer: Zinédine Zidane had chosen Isco to support Ronaldo and Benzema. For Bale, a seat on the bench awaited.
Both player and coach had reasons to feel frustrated. Bale because of his recent form, having buried five goals in his last four league games before the showdown with Liverpool. Zidane due to a perceived inability to rely on his gifted No11. And this was no time to take risks, with Madrid hoping to secure a third consecutive Champions League title and Zizou in line to become the first coach to win three in a row. Not bad for a man who had already earned his place in European Cup lore as the scorer of the greatest final goal after his astonishing volley for Madrid against Bayer Leverkusen in 2002. Greatest so far, anyway.
Madrid’s grip on the trophy was far from tight as the hour mark approached at the NSC Olimpiyskiy. Liverpool had lost danger man Mohamed Salah to a shoulder injury, but the Reds enjoyed the better first-half chances and did not wilt when Benzema broke the deadlock after 51 minutes, the Frenchman sticking out a leg to send a throw from goalkeeper Loris Karius trickling into the net. Sadio Mané’s quick reactions from a corner swiftly levelled the score, and Zidane was left to ponder his options, looking for a spark to re-establish control. With 61 minutes gone, up went the board: Isco off, Bale on.
For the moment of magic that would follow just 122 seconds later, we apparently have Mané to thank. That’s according to Marcelo, the Madrid full-back who collected a pass from Casemiro out wide on the left as the holders advanced. Switching the ball to his right foot, Marcelo spotted all three BBC stars lurking in the area and lofted in a cross. To the naked eye, it looked as if he had mishit the delivery, wafting it too far behind his team-mates. In the Brazilian’s telling, the ball brushed against Mané’s boot as the Liverpool forward lunged in, altering its flight.
Bale was unfazed. The closest Madrid player to the incoming cross, he seemed to make up his mind immediately, turning his back to goal and stepping out to meet it. The ball was still some distance in front of him, but with a vault into the air and a furious pedal of his left foot, he conjured a bicycle kick that managed to look both natural and unnatural – as graceful as it was preposterous as the ball whooshed back over his head on a majestic arc that sailed high beyond Karius and dipped into the top corner. Bale went on to score again, hitting a long-range effort that squirmed through Karius’ hands, but there was no mistaking the goal of the night. Of the season. Of probably any European Cup final ever.
Zidane’s immaculate volley from 2002 had been surpassed, but the Madrid boss could at least console himself with the 3-1 victory – and a new, unofficial prize for the best coaching reaction to any final goal. Almost as memorable as Bale’s acrobatic strike, Zidane was captured by the cameras resting a hand on his shiny dome in shock, his mouth then hanging open and shaking his hand back and forth as if he’d just touched a hot stove. From the great man himself, this was the ultimate validation – a goal even Zizou could scarcely believe, and it had come on the grandest stage of all. Forget the Tour de France. This was a tour de force that will stun and stagger for decades.
On 29 July 2018, Geraint Thomas pumped his fist and crossed the finish line on the Champs-Élysées to complete a historic triumph in the Tour de France. Never before had a Welshman tasted victory in cycling’s most prestigious race, his feat marked by a rapturous homecoming in Cardiff. A month later, the celebrations continued as the Welsh National Velodrome was renamed in his honour – but what if they had actually plumped for the wrong man? What if Thomas’ famous win wasn’t the biggest Welsh cycling miracle of 2018? What if that had come in mid-air above a football pitch in Kyiv? Welcome, instead, to the Gareth Bale National Velodrome.
Bale didn’t start the 2018 Champions League final expecting to achieve a high-wire fusion of two different sports. He wasn’t sure he’d get on the turf at all. The Wales legend may have joined Real Madrid in 2013 as the most expensive footballer in history, but five years later a series of injuries had blunted his influence. The once feared BBC front line of Bale, Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo had effectively collapsed, the trio not starting a single Champions League game together in 2017/18. Bale himself had started just three, and though he had worked his way back to fitness by the time of the final, the team sheet hit like a hammer: Zinédine Zidane had chosen Isco to support Ronaldo and Benzema. For Bale, a seat on the bench awaited.
Both player and coach had reasons to feel frustrated. Bale because of his recent form, having buried five goals in his last four league games before the showdown with Liverpool. Zidane due to a perceived inability to rely on his gifted No11. And this was no time to take risks, with Madrid hoping to secure a third consecutive Champions League title and Zizou in line to become the first coach to win three in a row. Not bad for a man who had already earned his place in European Cup lore as the scorer of the greatest final goal after his astonishing volley for Madrid against Bayer Leverkusen in 2002. Greatest so far, anyway.
Madrid’s grip on the trophy was far from tight as the hour mark approached at the NSC Olimpiyskiy. Liverpool had lost danger man Mohamed Salah to a shoulder injury, but the Reds enjoyed the better first-half chances and did not wilt when Benzema broke the deadlock after 51 minutes, the Frenchman sticking out a leg to send a throw from goalkeeper Loris Karius trickling into the net. Sadio Mané’s quick reactions from a corner swiftly levelled the score, and Zidane was left to ponder his options, looking for a spark to re-establish control. With 61 minutes gone, up went the board: Isco off, Bale on.
For the moment of magic that would follow just 122 seconds later, we apparently have Mané to thank. That’s according to Marcelo, the Madrid full-back who collected a pass from Casemiro out wide on the left as the holders advanced. Switching the ball to his right foot, Marcelo spotted all three BBC stars lurking in the area and lofted in a cross. To the naked eye, it looked as if he had mishit the delivery, wafting it too far behind his team-mates. In the Brazilian’s telling, the ball brushed against Mané’s boot as the Liverpool forward lunged in, altering its flight.
Bale was unfazed. The closest Madrid player to the incoming cross, he seemed to make up his mind immediately, turning his back to goal and stepping out to meet it. The ball was still some distance in front of him, but with a vault into the air and a furious pedal of his left foot, he conjured a bicycle kick that managed to look both natural and unnatural – as graceful as it was preposterous as the ball whooshed back over his head on a majestic arc that sailed high beyond Karius and dipped into the top corner. Bale went on to score again, hitting a long-range effort that squirmed through Karius’ hands, but there was no mistaking the goal of the night. Of the season. Of probably any European Cup final ever.
Zidane’s immaculate volley from 2002 had been surpassed, but the Madrid boss could at least console himself with the 3-1 victory – and a new, unofficial prize for the best coaching reaction to any final goal. Almost as memorable as Bale’s acrobatic strike, Zidane was captured by the cameras resting a hand on his shiny dome in shock, his mouth then hanging open and shaking his hand back and forth as if he’d just touched a hot stove. From the great man himself, this was the ultimate validation – a goal even Zizou could scarcely believe, and it had come on the grandest stage of all. Forget the Tour de France. This was a tour de force that will stun and stagger for decades.
