REAL MADRID PUTS ITS ONE LEG IN SEMIFINALS OVER BAYERN MUNICH

Apr 25, 2014 Emmanuel Opiyo Football, Sports 0

Real Madrid outclassed Bayern Munich to win 1-0 at the Bernabéu in the first round of the Champions League Semi-Final match.

The game was a cagey affair for both coaches Ancelotti and Guardiola both having there say in the touch lines, spewing instructions to their boys.

Bayern Munich having Shweinsteiger back from suspension gave the Germans a boost in front of goal pairing up with Robben and Ribery who were dangerous, spreading the ball well before the end of the half.

Bayern Munich controlled the major part of the game on either half’s at the Bernabue, but had a hard time finding the final ball to score with the Real Madrid defense standing solidly with Pepe leading the pack before being substituted by Varane who help hold the match to the final whistle from England referee Howard Webb .

Real Madrid’s prolific winger Cristiano Ronaldo coming back from injury hard a disappointing game missing a clear chance to get the second goal after a Benzema cool finish from a counter and an assist from Coentrao.

The other 100 million dollar winger Bale started on the bench coming late in the action threatening Bayern in the counter.

Real will meet the German team next week at their Allianz Arena in Munich with a 1-0 advantage. The two sides have met in five European Cup semi-finals with Bayern prevailing in 1976, 1987, 2001 and 2012; Madrid’s sole win came in 2000.

Between them the clubs have 14 European Cups. Bayern, five-time winners, are seeking to become the first side to retain the title since AC Milan managed the feat in 1989 and 1990 with a team featuring Carlo Ancelotti, now Madrid coach.

Overall they have faced each other nine times in two-legged encounters, with five wins for Bayern and four for Madrid. The Spanish club last got the better of Bayern in the 2003/04 round of 16 when a solitary strike by Zinédine Zidane – now Carlo Ancelotti’s assistant coach – secured a 1-0 second-leg victory at the Santiago Bernabéu and 2-1 overall triumph.

Madrid are the top scorers in the Champions League with 32 goals, three shy of the record for the current format with a maximum of 13 games set by themselves and FC Barcelona in 2011/12, when both exited in the last four.