Real Madrid Find Salvation in the Champions League as Only They Know How

The plane landed at Barajas Airport in Madrid just after 6 a.m. local time on Sunday, carrying the most prized possession of all: The trophy. Their trophy.

Eyes were visibly tired and legs were undoubtedly even more so, but it didn't matter; rest could wait. From Barajas, the first stop was the Santiago Bernabeu, and then it would be on to the Plaza de Cibeles, the site in the heart of the Spanish capital that has seen this party so many times before. 

So through the streets they went. With that trophy perched on the front of the bus and "CAMPEO11ES" splashed across all sides, the "N" neatly replaced by the number that counts, Real Madrid's players set about the journey and the celebration that's become so heavily associated with their club.

To greet them, thousand upon thousands of fans who'd partied through the night lined the route, and when the bus reached its destination, Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos draped his club's flag and scarf around the neck of the Cibeles statue.

There they were, and only one thing mattered.   

Had they been fearsome? Not really. 

Convincing? Not quite.  

Are they flawless? Not at all. 

Truly great? No way.

Are they champions? Yep.

Again.

JAVIER SORIANO/Getty Images

If the events of Saturday night and Sunday morning reinforced anything, it's that no one quite knows the UEFA Champions League like Real Madrid. This, after all, is the competition they identify with and define themselves by. Its prize is the one they crave above all else, and it's a prize they own once more. 

A prize in which they've found salvation.

Again.

This isn't one of the great Real Madrid sides by any stretch, and in many ways, Saturday night's penalty-shootout victory over neighbours Atletico Madrid at the San Siro in Milan was symbolic of their season. Throughout the evening, Zinedine Zidane's side oscillated between dominant and dominated; between incisive and ponderous; between assured and shaken; between fresh and riddled with fitness woes. 

This has been Real Madrid's way for 12 months, for more than that, and it was perhaps fitting they finished what they started in exactly that fashion.

When Ramos put his side ahead after 15 minutes, turning in Gareth Bale's neat flick-on header, Europe's traditional kings looked set for a march: They were confident and purposeful, Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak was making saves and Real's approach to proceedings appeared perfectly balanced.

And then they fell apart. 

After half-time, Yannick Carrasco replaced Augusto Fernandez and changed everything. Pepe gave away a penalty, and Dani Carvajal limped off. Danilo replaced him and was then torched by Carrasco, who levelled things up.

Suddenly, Atletico were on top everywhere, Real conceding possession and territory to the team that typically do that themselves.

Zidane got his changes wrong too—when you need control, Toni Kroos is someone you need on the pitch—and when added time arrived, Real were barely moving. Bale was limping and cramping, Cristiano Ronaldo wasn't close to fit and, at certain moments, the impressive Casemiro looked like he was playing on his own. 

Somehow, though, they held on. And then came the shootout, and all of that quality, poise and knowhow came flooding back. They were flawless and utterly convincing five times from the spot, and when Ronaldo stroked home the last of the kicks, it was theirs again—the European Cup, for the 11th time. 

This is just what Real Madrid do regardless of almost everything. 

Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

Indeed, perhaps more remarkable than Real Madrid's capture of La Undecima, the 11th, is the fact that, of those 11, the last eight have been claimed in seasons in which they haven't won the league. 

When Real are dealing with headaches elsewhere, it's the European Cup they turn to. It's what inspires them. It's where they seek salvation.

In 1997-98, Real spent a season falling over themselves and had won less than half of their games in La Liga, but still they stormed to Champions League glory, beating Juventus in the final. Two years later, they were an ever bigger mess, finishing fifth domestically, but again, in Europe they found something.

In 2002, they were stuck in Galactico underachievement but sparkled their way to more European ecstasy with that goal from Zidane. And in 2014, they couldn't get past an under-resourced Atletico or a stale Barcelona at home but lit up the continent on the way to No. 10.

As for the 11th?

The only way Real Madrid could have endured a more tumultuous campaign in 2015-16 would have been if they'd lit the Bernabeu on fire. This is a season that started with the sacking of a coach they liked, Carlo Ancelotti, and the hiring of one they didn't, Rafael Benitez, and what's followed since has bordered on extreme reality television.

There was Iker Casillas' ugly exit. There was Ramos' contract dispute. The David De Gea mess. The needless and headache-inducing spending on Danilo. A ridiculous pre-season campaign. Long-running questions over style. The Clasico mauling. Karim Benzema's blackmail scandal. Cadizazo and Denis Cheryshev. James Rodriguez's run-in with the police. More managerial upheaval. A transfer ban. Comical press conferences. Constant politicking. 

Those are just the headlines.

Yet once again, here they are anyway. 

Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images

Despite the turmoil that's surrounded them, in characteristic fashion, Real found a way to take on a different existence in the Champions League.

In Rome in the round of 16, the intensity of the celebrations said much. In the quarter-finals against Wolfsburg, Ronaldo inspired them to the mythical remontada. In the semi-finals against Manchester City, the Bernabeu was absolutely rocking. 

This is what that association and identification does. In La Liga, Real Madrid are simply an expensive team; in the Champions League, they're a different animal. The competition does something to them and to the fans, lighting something within them. 

They feel it. They know it. They find a way. The history matters. 

"It's been a tough year for us, [but] Madrid are always fighting" said Pepe to the club's official website in the wake of Saturday's triumph. "The Champions League is Real Madrid's competition," added Luka Modric. "The trophy belongs to Real Madrid." Ronaldo agreed: "The Champions League belongs to Real Madrid." 

Marca's cover simply read: "Endless glory."

And so here they are: Fearsome? Not really.

Convincing? Not quite.

Flawless? Not at all.

Truly great? No way.

Champions? Yep.

Again, it's theirs. Again, salvation. As only they know how.   

Follow @TimDCollins