Champions League final: Real Madrid beat Atletico to lift 11th European cup

Real Madrid are the champions of Europe for a record 11th time [Getty Images]

Real win a record 11th European Cup at the expense of city rivals Atletico Madrid 5-3 on penalties.

Real Madrid produced a gritty display of football to beat city rivals Atletico Madrid 5-3 on penalties in the Champions League final.

Securing a record 11th European Cup in Milan's San Siro stadium on Saturday, the opener came after 15 minutes with defender Sergio Ramos putting Real 1-0 up.

Atletico struggled to break through Real's defences in a rather dull first half, with 32-year-old striker Fernando Torres failing to complete a single pass.

And things continued to worsen early on in the second when Antoine Griezmann became the first player to miss a penalty in the Champions League final since Arjen Robben in 2012, after striking the crossbar.

But in the 79th minute, Belgian Yannick Carrasco scored a goal from close range to put Atletico back in the game after a delightful cross from Juanfran.

Neither side was able to score again in either the 90 minutes or the 30 minutes of extra-time, and the match went to penalties.

After successful spot-kicks for Real by Lucas Vazquez, Marcelo, Gareth Bale and Sergio Ramos; and for Atletico by Antoine Griezmann, Gabi and Saul, Juanfran's penalty was saved by Navas before Ronaldo scored the decisive penalty giving them a 5-3 shoot-out victory.

Real coach Zinedine Zidane and Atletico counterpart Diego Simeone had kept to the script with no real surprises in their respective line-ups for the final.

The Champions league is Zidane's first trophy as coach of Real Madrid [Reuters]

French striker Karim Benzema spearheaded the hosts' attack flanked by Cristiano Ronaldo and Welshman Gareth Bale, in front of a three-man midfield composed of Luka Modric, Casemiro and Toni Kroos.

Zidane, who won the trophy as a player with Real in 2002, won his first major trophy on Saturday in what is the Frenchman's first season in charge at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium.

Heartbreak

For Atletico, the pain of this final defeat may yet prove more fatal than that of two years ago.
This was its chance -- Real was out on its feet for much of extra-time, struggling to deal with Atletico's extra pace and movement.
And yet, Atletico could not find a way.
Two years ago it was within touching distance -- leading 1-0 going into injury time before Ramos scored a dramatic equalizer.
Atletico never recovered -- it conceded three times in extra time and lost 4-1 in a beating so brutal that the scars still burn bright.
This year was supposed to be different. In its 10 previous meetings with Real, Atletico had only lost once -- on that night in Lisbon.
And yet, for all the pregame hype surrounding Diego Simeone's side, it was Real which dominated the opening throes of the contest.

Anemic Atletico

If Real had expected its city rival to begin with the intensity and vigor it is famed for then it would have been happily surprised.
Atletico, which finished third in La Liga, one place behind Real, appeared to have frozen.
First, Casemiro was denied by Oblak from close range as Atletico's defense was caught napping in the opening minutes.
And with 15 minutes on the clock, Ramos turned home from under Oblak's nose, despite a suspicion of offside.
Real was dominating but failed to find a crucial second goal before the interval.

Recent Champions League winners

2016 Real Madrid (Spain)
2015 Barcelona (Spain)
2014 Real Madrid (Spain)
2013 Bayern Munich (Germany)
2012 Chelsea (England)
2011 Barcelona (Spain)