Rafa Nadal had just beaten Felix Auger-Aliassime to get through to the quarterfinals at Roland Garros, where he will face Novak Djokovic, but The Balearic still had images from 24 hours before on his retina, the victory of Real Madrid in the Champions League that he witnessed in Paris. “I enjoyed being able to be in my first live Champions League final and my team winning. It was a happy night, no doubt. It was hard to get there, honestly, but I enjoyed it. It has been one of the craziest titles in the Champions League, the way they achieved this title is simply unforgettable, because every game Real Madrid played has been something special”.
The 13-time champion of Roland Garros also thinks of his 14th as the Madrid Champions. And just as he is sometimes the superhero on clay, in Nadal’s head there is the performance of another giant on the field: “Comebacks, very tough moments… and even Courtois was incredible. It was a teamwork victory, without having, a priori, the best team, player by player. But they have managed to transmit something special and unite people. It is a title from the collective, rather than from individualities.In that sense it is more special.
Of course, Rafa could not stay at the party since he had a hard bone in front of him, the Canadian number 9 in the world: “I couldn’t see the celebration, to be honest, because unfortunately, with the half hour delay, I thought it was appropriate to go to bed after the match was over. So, unfortunately, I couldn’t be at the celebration, but I feel very fortunate to have been able to enjoy a final like this, so I thank Real Madrid and UEFA for inviting me and my family.” Now it’s time to just think about Djokovic.