Fernando Morientes, the best-paid player in French football, is proving to be the bargain of the season for Monaco.

The Spanish striker took a huge gamble moving from Real Madrid to the casino principality where he plays in front of a few thousand fans in a ground built over a car park.

However, it is Morientes, Monaco's talisman, who will be playing in the Champions League final on May 26, not Ronaldo, David Beckham and the other "galacticos" from Madrid.

His second half goal finished off Chelsea in Wednesday's semi-final second leg and at the final whistle Morientes, shaking his head in disbelief and staring into the night sky, seemed overwhelmed by what he had achieved.

"I'm still on a high," he said. "This is incredible and I just want to enjoy it as long as it lasts. Coach Didier Deschamps persuaded Morientes to leave Real on loan early in the season after Monaco's Shabani Nonda, the top scorer in the French Ligue 1 last season, was badly injured.

The 28-year-old has become the pivot around which a talented Monaco team turns. His ability both to score goals and set up others, particularly with his head, has thrilled a country which nurtured the skills of Zinedine Zidane and Thierry Henry.

"Morientes is our best player and an example to the rest of the team," says Deschamps. "We always go on the attack because we have him up front."

FRUSTRATED STRIKER

Morientes was frustrated last season sitting on the bench watching new signing Ronaldo lead the Real line.

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He had been one of a raft of players that joined Real from middle-ranking Spanish sides, in his case Real Zaragoza, as the celebrated club cherry-picked the best players in the Spanish Primera Liga and offered them lucrative long-term deals.

Renowned for his prowess in the air, the centre-forward was an important piece in the side that won the 1998 European Cup, allowing the club to regain its status as the best on the continent after a 32-year wait.

Forming a lethal partnership with close friend Raul, Morientes picked up two more European Cup winners medals in 2000 and 2002 and helped Real to league titles in 2001 and 2003.

However, just after finishing the season as Real's top scorer in the league with 18 goals, he fell victim to club president Florentino Perez's "galactico" recruitment policy.

Perez tried to use Morientes as a bargaining counter in a Ronaldo deal in August 2002, first as part exchange for the Brazilian World Cup winner and then by selling him to Barcelona.

Although Ronaldo arrived, Morientes ended up staying and watching most of the season from the dugout. After then losing his place in the Spanish national side, Morientes realised he would have no choice but to move on.

SKY-HIGH WAGES

His sky-high wages - around 4.5 million euros ($5.5 million) - meant that a loan move was the only option. In the end, Real had to agree to keep paying about two-thirds of his salary so that Monaco could afford the move.

The striker from the province of Caceres has become a far more rounded player since his move to the principality.

At Real he was an out-and-out centre-forward. Under Deschamps he has dropped back to play behind or alongside Monaco captain Ludovic Giuly, yet he has still managed to be the top scorer in the Champions League with nine goals.

In a delicious piece of irony it was Morientes's goals that helped eliminate Real from this season's Champions League.

His late strike in the 4-2 first leg at the Bernabeu brought a cheer from Real fans who were confident they would reach the last four regardless.

It was Monaco, though, who went on to make the semis on the away goals rule after a 3-1 win in the return and who now face Porto in the final at Gelsenkirchen.

"At the start of the season I didn't have the confidence in myself that I have now because I hardly played the year before," Morientes told Spanish sports daily Marca in a recent interview.

"My aim when I left Real was to rediscover that confidence. Now thanks to my coach, to Monaco and my team mates I've got it all back."

The importance of Morientes's performances was not lost on Inaki Saez who has recalled him to the Spanish side and is certain to make him a part of his plans for Euro 2004.

With Real struggling in the league, Perez said on Thursday that Morientes will be returning to Madrid at the end of June.

It is certain that he will be in no mood to spend the next campaign on the bench.