Most people thought that Carlo Ancelotti's Real, the best team on the continent, would make them regret those missed chances.
In fact, Dani Carvajal and Vinicius Junior taught Dortmund a harsh lesson in being cruel in the second half, helping Real Madrid win back their deserved European Cup trophy.
This was one of three titles they won in 2023–24; the other two were the La Liga title and the Spanish Super Cup.
Ancelotti's only small mistake at the Bernabeu was losing in the last 16 of the Copa del Rey. "Don Carlo," as he is affectionately known in the Spanish capital, has chosen to stay in charge of Real Madrid for at least one more season, despite earlier reports that he had reached a deal with the Brazil national team.
As usual for Real Madrid, the European winners only made a few changes to their team over the summer.
They are now missing two key players, Toni Kroos and Nacho Fernandez, but Kylian Mbappe is finally wearing the famous shirt after years of trying.
From afar, the former Paris Saint-Germain forward has seen Real's mixed preseason. Ancelotti's team beat Chelsea and Albacete before losing to AC Milan and Barcelona. He will help Los Blancos win a record-setting sixth UEFA Super Cup.
Real Madrid has won five UEFA Super Cups, which puts them at the top of the list, along with their most recent opponents, Barcelona and Milan.
On the other hand, Atalanta will be playing in their first UEFA Super Cup game after winning the Europa League under Ademola Lookman.
Even though Gian Piero Gasperini's team had a shocking win over pre-tournament favorites Liverpool, only a few people thought they could beat Xabi Alonso's Leverkusen.
But an amazing Lookman hat-trick secured La Dea's first European title and their first trophy in 61 years.
Lookman may have scored all the goals against Leverkusen, from missing a terrible panenka penalty against West Ham United while playing for Fulham to becoming the first person to score a hat-trick in a Europa League final.
Still, Gasperini got a lot of praise for how hard his team pressed the Bundesliga Invincibles.
Along with finishing fourth in Serie A and winning the Coppa Italia, the Italian giants also won the Europa League.
They will now play LDU Quito, the winners of the Copa Sudamericana, in the UEFA-CONMEBOL Club Challenge and will also be in next year's Supercoppa Italiana.
But Gasperini's team has had a terrible preseason. They drew 2-2 with AZ Alkmaar and then lost badly to Parma (4-1) and FC St. Pauli (3-0). But as Dublin saw a few months ago, Atalanta can turn up the heat when a European prize is on the line.
Real Madrid's pre-season form: WLLW
Atalanta BC's official form for all games: DLL
David Alaba, an experienced defender still recovering from an ACL injury, will be missing from Real Madrid's starting lineup in Warsaw.
Mbappe, who is now fully integrated into the team after his break after Euro 2024, should be the star of their lineup.
Carvajal and Jude Bellingham, both in the final, should also be in Ancelotti's almost full-strength team. The coach has talked up Endrick and Arda Guler before the UEFA Super Cup, but they should be considered for something other than starting here.
Since Mbappe arrived, there has been talk about the prospects of Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior, two great Brazilian wingers.
Vinicius Junior is said to have turned down a massive offer from the Saudi Pro League, but both are expected to support their French teammate this coming Wednesday.
Atalanta has also added some big names to their attack, getting Mateo Retegui from Genoa and finalizing a permanent deal for Charles De Ketelaere.
They have also said Ben Godfrey, Nicolo Zaniolo, and Ibrahim Sulemana.
Newcomers Gasperini has brought in Hans Hateboer, Pierluigi Gollini, Duvan Zapata, and Aleksei Miranchuk, who were all part of the old guard.
Retegui could make his competitive start-up top since Gianluca Scamacca will be out for months with an ACL injury.
Giorgio Scalvini is also taking a long time to recover from a similar injury, but he should be back before the end of the year. Meanwhile, Ederson, the star midfielder, is still at the Gewiss Stadium even though he has been linked with a few Premier League giants.
Juventus and Liverpool are both interested in Teun Koopmeiners, a Dutch player who has officially asked to be transferred. He should not be playing in the Super Cup.
This is how Real Madrid might start: Courttois; Carvajal; Rudiger; Militao; Mendy; Valverde; Tchouameni; Bellingham; Rodrygo; Mbappe; Vinicius Junior
This is how Atalanta BC might start: Musso; Djimsiti, Hien, Kolasinac; Zappacosta, Pasalic, Ederson, Ruggeri; Lookman, De Ketelaere; Retegui.
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