Real Madrid vs Bayern Munich LIVE: Champions League result and final score after dramatic semi-final comeback
Real Madrid 2-1 Bayern Munich (4-3 on agg.) Joselu came off the bench to score twice in the final minutes and send Madrid through to another Champions League final
Real Madrid stunned Bayern Munich with a dramatic late comeback as substitute Joselu scored twice in the final minutes to send the 14-time winners through to the Champions League final against Borussia Dortmund at Wembley.
Madrid were heading for a shock defeat when Alphonso Davies silenced the Bernabeu with a stunning strike, with Bayern manager Thomas Tuchel minutes from pulling off a remarkable upset after a backs-to-the-wall defensive performance.
But an error from Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, who looked unbeatable in denying Vinicius Jr earlier in the contest, allowed Joselu to score an 88th minute equaliser as the German spilled a tame shot.
Joselu then tapped in Antonio Rudiger’s cross moments later. It was initially disallowed for offside but it was awarded following a VAR review, sending Madrid through to the Wembley final where they will look to win a record-extending 15th European crown.
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Real Madrid find a new way to produce another unthinkable Champions League comeback
Match report by The Independent’s chief football writer, Miguel Delaney at the Santiago Bernabeu:
Real Madrid, somehow, but inevitably, find a new way to win. It was this time to feel what it must be like to play Real Madrid. And yet, of course, even they came through that. Bayern Munich had subjected the Spanish champions to the sort of experience Real Madrid have done to so many. They dug in, they frustrated, they scored a crucial goal out of nothing amid favourable refereeing decisions.
Real Madrid then threw it all in, including a supposed stand-in. For someone that was supposed to be a mere stop-gap for Kylian Mbappe, Joselu is instead a new folk hero. He scored in the 88th and 92nd minutes to somehow turn the most typical 1-0 defeat into a victory that was atypical for a team that wins more than any other.
It was like this time they had defied the power of narrative itself, such is the way these games go. They are the narrative. They are the story of the modern Champions League. They will now surely be eyeing up a club 15th and a personal fifth for Carlo Ancelotti. Borussia Dortmund are going to have to come up with something more than Bayern Munich, but Thomas Tuchel had seemed to get it right.
Real Madrid find a new way to produce another unthinkable Champions League comeback
Real Madrid 2-1 Bayern Munich (4-3 on agg): Joselu’s late double sent the 14-time winners through to a Champions League final against Borussia Dortmund at Wembley
Harry Kane’s hunt for trophies has hit a catastrophic new low at Bayern Munich
Some jokes just write themselves: Harry Kane moved to Bayern Munich to win his first trophy, only for Bayern Munich to have their first trophyless season in 12 years. Perhaps it is irrefutable proof of a curse, that after leaving Tottenham without ending the club’s long wait for silverware, Kane’s arrival in Germany suddenly caused a title-winning machine like Bayern to malfunction beyond recognition.
This, of course, is neither fair or true, but while Kane’s debut campaign at Bayern end with a handful of individual awards and a new personal record for his most goals in a season, the wait for a first major honour of the 30-year-old’s professional career will continue. It may have been unthinkable last summer, but the trophy cabinet remains empty after Real Madrid put an end to Bayern’s Champions League hopes in the semi-finals.
A failed season, then? Kane was asked about the prospect of a trophyless year before facing Arsenal in the quarter-finals and his response was unequivocal. “Of course,” he replied. “We’re expected to win.”
Harry Kane’s hunt for trophies has hit a catastrophic new low at Bayern Munich
Defeat to Real Madrid in the Champions League condemned Bayern Munich to a first trophyless season since 2011-12, and leaves Kane still searching for his first major honour
Thomas Tuchel claims ‘betrayal’ after controversial moment in Champions League semi-final
Thomas Tuchel claimed he received an apology from the assistant referee who raised his flag early and potentially denied Bayern Munich a late equaliser in their Champions League semi-final defeat to Real Madrid.
Hosts Madrid pulled off a stunning late comeback at the Bernabeu as substitute Joselu came off the bench to turn the tie around in the final minutes, after Bayern had led thanks to a Alphonso Davies strike.
But Bayern had the ball in the net again in the dying seconds of injury time, as Matthijs de Ligt thrashed a shot in from just inside the Real Madrid box following a long ball into the penalty area.
The goal was quickly ruled out as the assistant referee’s flag was raised and the whistle went a couple of seconds before De Ligt shot. Noussair Mazraoui and De Ligt were given offside, but replays showed it was close.
Thomas Tuchel claims ‘betrayal’ after controversial moment in semi-final
Bayern Munich thought they found a late equaliser against Real Madrid but were denied by an early offside flag
Thomas Tuchel slammed for taking off Harry Kane in Bayern Munich’s defeat to Real Madrid
Harry Kane’s substitution from Bayern Munich’s Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid backfired spectacularly on Thomas Tuchel, who was accused of “arrogance” after withdrawing his top scorer in the late defeat at the Bernabeu.
Tuchel said Kane “was having back problems” and had no choice but to remove the England captain.
But the manager’s defensive changes were criticised by TNT Sport pundits Owen Hargreaves and Paul Scholes, with centre-back Kim Min-jae, who made an error in the first leg in Munich, struggling after he was brought on midway through the second half in Madrid.
Kane was withdrawn in the 85th minute, with Bayern leading Madrid by one goal as they looked to reach the Wembley final. But Madrid forward Joselu came off the bench to equalise just four minutes later, with Tuchel having also taken off top attacking options Jamal Musiala and Leroy Sane.
Tuchel slammed for taking off Kane in Bayern’s defeat to Real Madrid
Tuchel said Kane was ‘having back problems’ when he was brought off with Bayern only a goal up and minutes from the Champions League final
Thomas Tuchel furious with referee for late incident
Tuchel said: “Almost through, almost there and then a very unusual mistake of our very best player for the equaliser, then we conceded in a very narrow decision the second one and then in stoppage one.
“Then we scored one and we have a disastrous decision from the linesman and from the referee. So it feels almost like a betrayal in the end because of that decision and it was a huge fight, we left everything on the pitch we were almost there and now we have to say congratulations to Real Madrid.”
When asked if he had spoken to anyone about the decision, Tuchel said: “The linesman said sorry, but that does not help on that kind of level to raise the flag in a decision like this, in a close decision, in the last minute, and the referee as well, the referee does not have to whistle.
“He sees the second ball, he sees that we get a shot away. To whistle, it’s a very very bad decision and it’s against the rules. It’s a bad decision from both of them, it’s a disaster.”
Ancelotti speaks after the match
The Real Madrid manager added: “To believe you have to put fresh legs on the pitch, Joselu did a fantastic job, he’s a fantastic striker.
“We used more of the width to put in crosses and we did really well. We had a lot of energy in a lot of the game.”
When asked about the celebrations, Ancelotti said: “I’m going to enjoy it of course from now until the final. We have fantastic days with our supporters to celebrate the league. It will be fantastic. [To the reporter] You can stay in Madrid with us!”
On his players’ attitude, he said: “Unbelievable. I’m really grateful to them, they work really hard, I think this is the best squad I have ever had in my career.”
Carlo Ancelotti speaks after Real Madrid reached the Champions League final
Ancelotti said to TNT Sports: “I think we played well, and to be honest, we had opportunities to take control of the game, we had the strength to go up when they scored, it happened again here.
“It’s quite useful that at the Bernabeu with our supporters, we can do something that is unexpected.”
Jude Bellingham speaks after Real Madrid’s win
On the final being at Wembley: “At Wembley, against Dortmund, it’s a weird one, I can’t believe it.
“I’m so looking forward to it, the atmosphere, the game itself, the Champions League final.”
When asked about playing his former club Dortmund, he said: “I think at this stage of the competition, anyone who’s still in it, or anyone who’s got in that final deserves to be there, so to cherry-pick would be unfair.
“We’ve got there because we deserve to and they’ve got there because they deserve to and that’s what the final is all about and hopefully it can be a great game.”
He added: “When I was seven years old in Birmingham, I was dreaming of nights like this.”
Jude Bellingham speaks after Real Madrid’s win
Bellingham was asked if there was an expectation for victory at Real, and he said: “Definitely. You come here and that’s all they talk about.
“They talk about how you’ve had the 14th and they want the 15th, and the lads say to me it was the same when they won the 10th and they want the 11th, that’s why I love being here.
“You can never be settled. I think you’re always in a dangerous position when you relax and when you’re comfortable, and here they don’t give you a chance which is the best thing in football.”
Jude Bellingham speaks after Real Madrid’s win
When asked about the importance of the crowd, Bellingham said: “They’re unbelievable. They’re the best in the world by far.
“Coming here, there’s a reason why we turn so many games, why when we’re down in certain legs we always manage to come back in the second leg, it’s because of them, they give you an energy that you can’t get from anything else.”
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