Historical Real Madrid vs Bayern Munich: Real Madrid Shocks Bayern, Clinches Champions League Final Spot
In an historical turn of events the Real Madrid vs Bayern Munich soccer/football game turned out to be a stunner.
Was this Real Madrid vs Bayern Munich matchup all that it was expected to be?
By: NEWS WIRES
Alphonso Davies smashed the visiting German giants ahead in the second half but record 14-time winners Madrid produced a sensational comeback with Joselu netting in the 88th and 91st minutes.
Spanish champions Real Madrid face another German side, Borussia Dortmund, in the Wembley final on June 1, after they stunned the team they call their “black beast”.
“It’s something magical, there’s no explanation,” said Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti, revelling in another electric night in the Spanish capital.
Journeyman striker and back-up option Joselu, on as a late substitute, wrote his name in Madrid’s history books with his last-gasp brace, giving Europe’s comeback kings another night to remember.
“(The comeback) was with feeling and with heart, as the coach told us — you have to win games with heart,” said Joselu.
Madrid had enjoyed the better of the match but it seemed Davies’ superb strike had set up a repeat of the 2013 all-German final in London.
Instead Joselu consigned Bayern to a first trophyless season since 2012, his first goal coming after a handling error from Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, who had superbly kept Madrid at bay until that point.
“(Before that) there were world class saves after world class saves, but that can happen, it’s football,” said Bayern defender Matthijs de Ligt.
High-intensity
Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel made three changes from the first leg, benching veteran Thomas Mueller and Leon Goretzka but the hosts dominated the opening stages.
Neuer produced a superb double save to stop Madrid nosing in front, tipping the electric Vinicius Junior’s effort on to the post and then saving Rodrygo’s follow-up.
Bayern’s Serge Gnabry limped off injured with Davies replacing him before England captain Harry Kane’s first flash of danger, but Andriy Lunin pushed his vicious volley around the post.
Neuer palmed away a Vinicius free-kick as the teams ended a high-intensity, relentlessly frantic first half level.
The second period was just as fraught, with Davies’ cross deflecting onto the roof of Lunin’s goal.
Vinicius was unplayable down Madrid’s left and Rodrygo prodded his low cross agonisingly wide of the far post.
The 38-year-old Neuer made superb saves to deny both Brazilian forwards again before the hour mark as Madrid ratcheted up the pressure.
However just as in Munich, when Los Blancos were at their strongest, Bayern pounced.
Canada international Davies cut inside from the left and smashed a shot beyond Lunin into the far top corner after 68 minutes.
Madrid thought they had levelled moments later through Nacho but after a VAR review the strike was ruled out as the defender had grabbed Joshua Kimmich’s face before shooting.
Tuchel took off Kane, still chasing the first trophy of his career, in the final stages to try and hold on to victory but it slipped through his fingers as Madrid produced more indelible European memories.
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The Champions League final is set, perennial contenders Real Madrid set to face off against surprise package Borussia Dortmund on June 1 at Wembley. What can we expect from this clash between the champions of Spain and a side who most expected wouldn’t even make it out of the group? Here are three key questions ahead of the final.
How to watch
Date: Saturday, June 1 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
Location: Wembley Stadium — London, England
TV: CBS | Stream: Paramount+
Will Madrid need their flair for the dramatic?
Here we are again, a Real Madrid side that hasn’t really profiled as one of the very best in Europe over the last 10 months still finding themselves right where they need to be come the defining night of the continental season. It is just what they do even if they rarely do so in the easiest of ways. Another side might have buckled under the late pressure from RB Leipzig.
Many would never have been able to hold firm when Manchester City swung haymaker after haymaker in their direction for two hours at the Etihad. No one other than Madrid would have believed it was their manifest destiny to reach Wembley when a goal down to Bayern Munich, Europe’s masters of defensive possession, with eight minutes and added time on the clock.
This is just how Madrid do things. Except, surely they won’t need to at Wembley, will they? Make no mistake, Carlo Ancelotti’s men are prohibitive favorites, -350 in the early betting against a side that might not even make the top four in the Bundesliga this season (it is their Champions League excellence and that of their contemporaries in European competition that mean Dortmund will be back in the big time no matter what in 2024-25).
BVB might have held firm against the likes of Antoine Griezmann and Kylian Mbappe but in the final they will face an opponent that does not tend to be quite so heliocentric.
Madrid can just give the ball to Vinicius Junior and watch him cook — it worked well enough to leave Joshua Kimmich a smoldering wreck in the Santiago Bernabeu — but they can grind teams down with their possession, exploit the predatory instincts of Rodrygo and Jude Bellingham or unleash a bench that always seems to offer different looks for Ancelotti.
Pound for pound (and Madrid have spent a lot more of them), the Spanish champions are far better than their opponents. Indeed, would anyone in the Dortmund side displace their Madrid counterpart? Perhaps Ian Maatsen, Gregor Kobel if Thibaut Courtois is not back to full fitness by June 1.
The 14-time champions should win this handily and that fact, in and of itself, offers one a curious pause for thought. Madrid’s greatness in this competition post-Cristiano Ronaldo has been defined by their flair for the dramatic, continually finding themselves in spots where they are on the brink against teams they perhaps ought to lose to anyway.
Can they cope with circumstances where everyone, probably even Dortmund players in their most candid moments, expects them to win it? Or are they just going to have to manufacture another underdog scenario for themselves?
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In the upcoming matchup between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, with their rich history and depth of experience in finals, enter as favourites. However, Dortmund’s journey to the final has been nothing short of a fairy tale, marked by tactical ingenuity and spirited performances.
This match promises a clash of styles: Real’s strategic finesse versus Dortmund’s dynamic and aggressive play. As fans and neutrals alike anticipate a thrilling encounter, the stage is perfectly set for a memorable showdown in European football.
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