Bayern Munich suffer UEFA Champions League semi-final heartbreak in Madrid
Bayern Munich were devastatingly denied a place in the UEFA Champions League final as former Hoffenheim forward Joselu came off the bench to score two late goals that mean Real Madrid will challenge Borussia Dortmund for European club football's biggest prize at Wembley on 1 June.
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Real Madrid 2-1 Bayern Munich (4-3 on aggregate) Goals: 0-1 Davies (68'), 1-1 Joselu (88'), 2-1 Joselu (90'+1)
Having watched Dortmund secure their place in the final 24 hours earlier, Bayern would have been doubly determined to triumph in the Spanish capital where - having drawn 2-2 in the first leg in Germany last week - the teams started all square. Predictably, Madrid started strongly in front of a massive crowd in which the 3000 travelling fans struggled to make themselves heard. Dani Carvajal's early cross rolled invitingly across goal without anyone in a white shirt getting a touch before Manuel Neuer - almost single-handedly - kept the hosts at bay. He brilliantly turned a Vinícius Júnior drive onto a post before blocking Rodrygo's follow-up an instant later. He later turned a Vinícius cross around the far post which the ball would have sneaked inside of otherwise to keep Bayern in it. Thomas Tuchel's men struggled to create chances, but an opportunistic volley from Harry Kane that Andriy Lunin leapt to his left to push aside reminded the hosts of Bayern's attacking threat.
It was Neuer though who stood out most. After he had watched Rodrygo's shot roll wide of the far post, the Germany number one then flew to his right to halt a well-executed free-kick from the Brazilian, and then flicked a Vinícius blockbuster over the bar as Bayern hung on in the tie thanks only to the hands of their goalkeeper. And then suddenly they were on the front foot. Davies, an early first-half substitute for the injured Serge Gnabry, sped down the left before teeing up Jamal Musiala for a shot Lunin tipped over. When the Canada international did the same thing shortly afterwards, he took matters in hand himself, cutting inside to bend a sublime strike inside the far post. Madrid thought they had hit back almost immediately, but a foul by Nacho on Joshua Kimmich just before the hosts' captain diverted a low shot past Neuer meant the strike was ruled out. There was no reprieve when Neuer uncharacteristically spilled a Vinícius shot, and Joselu, who had only come off the bench on 81 minutes, snapped up the rebound. He then steered home Antonio Rüdiger's cross from close range, celebrating wildly after VAR validated his strike after it had initially been ruled out for offside to break Bayern hearts.
Match stats
Bayern will end a season trophyless for the first time since 2011/12.
It was Davies' first Champions League goal in his 43rd appearance in the competition.
With eight goals, Kane remains the leading goalscorer in the Champions League this season alongside Paris Saint-Germain's Kylian Mbappé.
Thomas Müller came off the bench to make his 151st Champions League appearance, drawing level with fifth-placed Xavi in the all-time list and joint-most for a single club.
This was the eighth semi-final meeting between the two teams - both have now prevailed on four occasions.
Bayern have lost just twice in their last 13 matches with Spanish opposition.
Tuchel's men have found the back of the net in all but one of their last 16 matches in all competitions.
Champions League Semi-final, 2nd leg Semi-final, 2nd leg Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid
Full-time: Real Madrid 2-1 Bayern Munich
Bayern are knocked out of the Champions League in the cruelest of fashions. Alphonso Davies had seemingly put them on their way to Wembley, but a late double from Joselu turned the match on his head's and broke Bavarian hearts. Real Madrid will now play Borussia Dortmund in the final at Wembley.
The Englishman throws himself in front of Díaz's shot. Backs against the wall now.
88'
All square
Neuer will not want to see that one again. He has been brilliant all night, but allows a tame Vinícius shot to bounce of his chest and Joselu picks up the pieces.
A chance for Kane to put Bayern into dreamland, but he can't quite find the target.
73'
Goal - but wait....
Real appear to be back on level terms as De Ligt turns a low Nacho effort into the net. However, there is a clear foul from the Blancos captain on Kimmich in the build-up, and the goal is rightly chalked off.
70'
Maiden UCL goal
What a time to get your Champions League account off the mark - that was Davies' first-ever strike at this level.
Just like that, Bayern are in front! Kane sprays a ball out to Davies, who cuts onto his supposedly weaker right foot and hammers his strike into the far corner. Der Rekordmeister have their noses in front and are edging closer to Wembley!
The 38-year-old is rolling back the years tonight! His latest act is to dive and keep out Rodrygo's free-kick.
55'
Wide!
Vinícius is again involved in Madrid's next chance, crossing low into Rodrygo. His compatriot can only direct his first-time chance narrowly past the post, though.
53'
Lunin save!
Bayern go straight up the other end and fire a shot off courtesy of Kane. Real's goalkeeper gets down well, though, and parries away.
53'
Valverde wide
The midfielder fires a wild effort way past the upright.
52'
Vinícius causing problems
The Brazilian is getting plenty of joy down the left flank. Bayern need to get closer and stop him turning and dribbling.
48'
Cleared
The set-piece comes to nothing.
47'
Davies goes close!
The substitute's effort is deflected onto the roof of the net by Carvajal. Corner for Bayern.
46'
Back underway!
The second half kicks off with everything still up in the air.
Kick-off!
Half-time: Real Madrid 0-0 Bayern Munich
The first half draws to a close with tonight's match, as well as the tie, still all square. Real had the better of the chances before the break, with Manuel Neuer pushing Vinícius Júnior's shot onto the post before saving Rodrygo's rebound, but Andriy Lunin was required to push Harry Kane's well-hit volley past the post. Nothing, though, can separate these two at the moment.
The ball falls to Kane just outside the area, and it takes a Lunin fingertip to stop his strike from nestling in the bottom corner. The subsequent corner is held by the Ukrainian.
28'
Early blow
Gnabry goes down and clearly can't continue, so Tuchel turns to Davies as his replacement. Not what Bayern will have wanted to deal with so early into this clash.
The visitors have managed to take a little bit of the sting out of Madrid's early intensity.
15'
Wide
Vinícius tries to curl one into the far corner, but it flies several yards beyond the far post. Bayern under pressure here, though.
13'
Huge chance!
There is confusion with two balls seemingly in play, and Real almost take advantage. Neuer, though, is in top form as he tips Vinícius' shot onto the post before keeping out Rodrygo's rebound.
Gnabry is released on the left of the box, but with Kane unmarked in the middle, he puts too much on his cross and it goes out for a goal-kick. A waste from that position, in all honesty!
6'
Inches away!
Almost the first chance for the hosts, as Carvajal plays a ball across the face of goal. It just evades Rodrygo, though, as Bayern are let off.
5'
Back and fourth early on
Both sides are looking to make their mark on this encounter. No chances as of yet though.
1'
We're off!
Underway here in Madrid, and Real have a corner inside the first minute. It comes to nothing in the end, though, as Gnabry clears.
Kick-off!
Out of the tunnel
The players are making their way onto the pitch. Kick-off is moments away.
Der Rekordmeister's travelling contigent really are making themselves heard in the Spanish capital!
Sané to make an impact?
The winger has played a huge role in Bayern's progression through this tournament, scoring against Arsenal in the quarter-final first leg before netting against Real last week. Will he pop with another important moment tonight?
Bayern fans out in force
Plenty of supporters have made their way from Bavaria to the Bernabéu!
Much like his Bayern counterpart, Ancelotti rings the changes. Only two of the starting XI against Cádiz at the weekend keep their places - Dani Carvajal and captain Nacho - with big-hitters Jude Bellingham, Vinícius Júnior and Rodrygo amongst those returning. Bundesliga alumni Antonio Rüdiger and Toni Kroos both start.
Thomas Tuchel makes several changes to the team that lost to Stuttgart at the weekend, as expected. Two of the three behind Harry Kane are replaced, with Leroy Sané and Jamal Musiala returning to the side. Surprisingly, the boss has 20-year-old Aleksandar Pavlović over the more experienced Leon Goretzka in the middle of the park.
Neuer (c) - Kimmich, De Ligt, Dier, Mazraoui - Laimer, Pavlović - Sané, Musiala, Gnabry - Kane
Bayern subs
Peretz, Ulreich, Upamecano, Kim, Goretzka, Choupo-Moting, Zaragoza, Davies, Müller, Tel
Tuchel on the second leg
Speaking to media yesterday, Bayern boss Thomas Tuchel said: "I think it could be a back-and-forth game with lots of different phases. Both sides are incredibly good at keeping possession. I think it will be a complex match. During those phases where you have the momentum, you need luck on your side and you need to be clinical."
... that's because their Klassiker rivals, Borussia Dortmund, punched their ticket to the UK last night. A 2-0 aggregate win over Paris Saint-Germain means BVB can gain redemption for their 2012/13 defeat in the UCL final at the hands of Bayern. A repeat of that all-Bundesliga final on 1 June would be quite something.
A very warm welcome to our live coverage of tonight's second semi-final between Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. With the score level at 2-2 after a cracker of a first-leg, it's all to play for. And, for Bayern, there's added incentive to reach the showpiece in London...
Kane leads the way
The Englishman is the Champions League's leading goalscorer this term alongside Paris Saint-Germain's Kylian Mbappé with eight strikes. He will be looking to add to that tally at the Santiago Bernabéu.
Real Madrid champions
The Spanish outfit clinched their 36th LaLiga title at the weekend after Barcelona lost 4-2 to Girona. They celebrated their latest triumph with a 3-0 victory over Cádiz.
Real Madrid team news
Ancelotti, meanwhile has almost everyone to choose from. Aurélien Tchouaméni is the only potential absentee, as he recovers from a knock. Former Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham, as well as ex-Bayern stars, Toni Kroos and David Alaba, will be familiar faces. Antonio Rüdiger, who started out at Stuttgart, should also be part of the matchday squad.
Bayern team news
Thomas Tuchel has the majority of his big hitters available. Long-term absentees Sacha Boey, Kingsley Coman and Bouna Sarr are all not available, while Raphaël Guerreiro's ankle issue also keeps out of the travelling squad. Otherwise, though, there are a plethora of options to choose from - good news for the boss, of course.
Caravjal: "You have to enjoy these moments"
Right-back Dani Carvajal was also present at the press conference, and was asked whether he is scared to face Bayern? He responded, “The coach is always more scared, no? I’m excited to try and face a big rival, I’m looking forward to it, to having dinner with our team-mates tonight and watching the other semi-final. You have to enjoy these moments because you’ll remember it when this is over. Last week I traveled with the team even though I couldn’t play and I enjoyed it. Tomorrow, I will try to do that too, to focus on enjoying and not losing energy on nerves.”
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has been speaking to the press in the build-up to the clash. He said, "We're Real Madrid. The team has worked very well this season. Real and Bayern are very similar. We respect Bayern very much. They were better than us in the first leg. We need to give our best. We have a chance to play in another final."
The two sides played out a 2-2 draw in the first leg at the Allianz Arena, leaving the tie evenly poised. Real took the lead through Vinícius Júnior, before goals from Leroy Sané and Harry Kane turned the match on its head. However, despite dominating for much of the encounter, Bayern had to make do with a level scoreline as Vinícius scored from the spot late on.
2:03
Watch: Stuttgart 3-1 Bayern - highlights
It wasn't the best preparation for Bayern this past weekend as they succumbed to Stuttgart.
Stay tuned!
After a 2-2 draw in Munich, Bayern need to win in Madrid if they're to reach the 2023/24 UEFA Champions League final. They can do it in 90, after extra-time or penalties - but only a win will do.
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First-leg report
Bayern Munich 2-2 Real Madrid Goals: 0-1 Vinícius Júnior 24' (assist: Kroos), 1-1 Sané 53' (assist: Laimer), 2-1 Kane (pen. 57'), 2-2Vinícius Júnior (pen. 83')
Bayern were all over Real like a rash in the opening 15 to 20 minutes, with Leroy Sané setting the tone with a shot across goal that Andriy Lunin did really well to block with his feet. Sané was sent through on goal soon after, but a rusty first touch took him wide and his eventual shot sailed over the crossbar. Harry Kane tried to catch out Lunin with an audacious effort from almost halfway, while the returning Jamal Musiala fired off target with a couple of warning shots. It appeared to be only a matter of time before Bayern would get their noses in front, but Real hadn't read the script. Former Bayern man Toni Kroos sprayed a long pass up towards the edge of the box for Vinícius Júnior, who got away from Minjae Kim and confidently slotted past the advancing Manuel Neuer. Kane sent a fierce curling strike narrowly wide as Bayern went in at the break undeservedly behind in the tie.
Thomas Tuchel reacted by introducing Raphaël Guerreiro for Leon Goretzka, and moving Sané out to the right-hand side. As Bayern adjusted to the tactical tweak, Neuer was forced into a diving save to stop Kroos finding the top corner following a lightning Real counter. The record champions responded in the best possible fashion, with Sané powering in off the right and driving a fine finish past Lunin at his near post to level. And they were ahead four minutes later as Kane sent the goalkeeper the wrong way from the penalty spot after Lucas Vázquez had upended Musiala. After a deflection took Kane's next attempt from open play wide, Eric Dier missed the chance to make it an English double when he directed a free header straight at Lunin. Neuer thwarted Vinícius Júnior from close range, but could not prevent the Brazilian from dusting himself off from Kim's rash challenge and levelling the tie from the spot with seven minutes of normal time remaining. Bayern go to Madrid for the return leg on 8 May, with a place in the final on the line.
