Borussia Dortmund are through to the UEFA Champions League final after securing a 4-3 aggregate win over Real Madrid.
Following their stunning 4-1 success in Germany a week ago, the
visitors were stubborn throughout, with Madrid only able to breach their
backline in the final 10 minutes through Karim Benzema and Sergio
Ramos.
Jose Mourinho made two changes from the first leg, bringing
in Michael Essien and Angel di Maria for Pepe and Sami Khedira, while
Dortmund went with the same XI that had won so convincingly at the
Westfalenstadion.
The hosts exploded into the game and could have
taken the lead as early as the fourth minute. Luka Modric robbed Marcel
Schmelzer and touched the ball to Mesut Ozil, who found Gonzalo Higuain
first time in the box, but Roman Weidenfeller rushed out to smother the
Argentine.
Ronaldo then blasted an effort over and hit a
swivelling volley at Weidenfeller, either side of an opening for Robert
Lewandowski, before Dortmund were handed an early blow as Mario Gotze
was forced off with a hamstring strain and replaced by Kevin
Grosskreutz.
Madrid were swarming forward and wasted yet another
gilt-edged chance as Higuain's flick sent Ozil through on goal but, with
Ronaldo waiting square for a tap-in, the German screwed his effort wide
at the near post.
In the build-up to Tuesday's game Mourinho had
lamented Real's soft approach to handling Lewandowski in the first leg,
but his side went about roughing up the Pole where they could at the
start of the second. Fabio Coentrao was the first to go into Howard
Webb's notepad for a crunching challenge on the striker, while he was
also caught by a stray Sergio Ramos elbow in an aerial challenge.
The
visitors smelt blood and went after an early goal in the second half.
Lewandowski blazed over after good work from Jakub Blaszczykowski on the
left and had an even better chance just a minute later as Reus slipped
him through on goal, but the number nine rattled the crossbar from eight
yards.
Dortmund kept the pressure on and Madrid had Diego Lopez
to thank as he thwarted Ilkay Gundogan from point-blank range after
Marco Reus and Grosskreutz's one-two had left Raphael Varane for dead.
Madrid
were struggling, with Mats Hummels and Neven Subotic proving nigh-on
impossible to breach despite wave after wave of attack.
Indeed it
was Dortmund who continued to make the better of the chances and they
should have killed the tie off for good with 15 minutes to play. Reus
danced into the box and, with a sight of goal, squared for Lewandowski,
but Varane threw himself in front of the Pole's effort to preserve the
stalemate on the night.
But the home fans were given cause for
hope in the 83rd minute as Khedira played Ozil in down the left flank
and crossed for Benzema, who finished high into the net.
With two
minutes left on the clock, Madrid had another. Benzema did magnificently
to control a high ball on the bye-line and cut back to Ramos, who
thumped the ball past Weidenfeller, but it was not enough for the hosts
and Dortmund will go on to face Barcelona or Bayern Munich, who are 4-0
up from the first leg, at Wembley in May.
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