Bayern Munich dashes Real Madrid's hopes
Bayern Munich secured their place in the Champions League semi-finals with a 4-3 victory over Real Madrid on Wednesday, setting up a clash with defending champions Paris Saint-Germain.
Colombian Luis Diaz scored the equalizer (3-3) in the 89th minute, enough to secure qualification after Bayern's 2-1 win in the first leg in Madrid. Frenchman Michaël Olsés then sealed the victory in stoppage time (90+4), following goals from England's Harry Kane (38) and Aleksandar Pavlović (6). For Real Madrid, Arda Güler (1 and 29) and France's Kylian Mbappé (42) scored three goals. Real Madrid also had two players sent off: Eduardo Camavinga (86) and Güler (90+5). Bayern Munich reaffirmed their dominance at the Allianz Arena, having lost only once in their last 29 Champions League matches (23 wins and 5 draws), including this one. This victory marked their second consecutive win against Real Madrid after an eight-match winless streak.
Meanwhile, the Spanish capital club suffered another blow, having already fallen nine points behind league leaders Barcelona in La Liga, the only remaining competition they are still in contention for.
Despite four changes made by their coach, Álvaro Arbeloa, Real Madrid failed to take "everything" from Munich, as their English player, Jude Bellingham, returning to the starting lineup, had declared. Instead, they left empty-handed against a formidable attacking force that broke a 54-year-old record for goals in a single Bundesliga season, scoring 104 goals so far. On the pitch, after being named Man of the Match in the first leg, veteran goalkeeper Manuel Neuer made a major error when he attempted to clear the ball from his goal, passing it directly to Güler, who then fired it into the empty net (1).
But Real Madrid's joy lasted only five minutes, as Ukrainian goalkeeper Andriy Lunin misjudged a corner kick from Joshua Kimmich, allowing Pavlovic to tap it into the net in the 6th minute.
From another error, Güler scored the visitors' second goal with a precise shot to the right of Neuer, who hesitated in coming out and touched the ball without clearing it, even going into the goal with it in the 30th minute. The equalizer came from Kane, who received a pass from the advancing Frenchman Dayot Upamecano and placed it to the right of the Ukrainian goalkeeper, who dived the other way in the 38th minute. Brazilian Vinicius Junior almost scored a third with a powerful shot that rebounded off the crossbar in the 41st minute, before playing a decisive pass on a counter-attack to Mbappé, who faced Neuer and slotted the ball into the net in the 42nd minute. Substitute Camavinga received two yellow cards within eight minutes in the 86th minute, then Luis Dias scored the equalizer that secured qualification for the semi-finals with a superb shot from outside the penalty area in the 89th minute, before Ulises sealed the victory and qualification. Following a counter-attack, a solo effort, and a shot into the right corner of the net (90+4).
In the fifth minute of stoppage time, Güler was shown a straight red card.