Real Madrid 2-1 (4-3 on agg.) Bayern Munich
A classic European tie and a potential Champions League semi-final for the ages was how I had billed this one.
It hardly needed Einstein to predict such an outcome.
What I had not envisaged, however, was how dramatic it would be.
In fact, it was just like turning the clock back to 2018 or to two years ago.
You see, Real Madrid simply never know when they are beaten.
Highlights of the game
With minutes remaining, even the SBOTOP Champions League betting odds must have fancied Bayern Munich.
Evenly poised after the 2-2 drawn first leg, they led through a stunning goal by Alphonso Davies midway through the second half, picked out by England captain Harry Kane with a vision only leading players have.
That’s how it stayed until two minutes from time when the usually reliably Manuel Neuer spilled a shot from Vinicius Junior and there was Joselu to level matters.
With extra-time looming, Joselu – best remembered (until tonight that is) for a spell at Stoke City – swept home a pass from Antonio Rudiger and the Bernabeu went ballistic. That is once VAR overturned an initial offside.
Not since the most epic European final of all – the 1999 Champions League Final 25 years ago this month – have Bayern suffered despair like this.
The Bundesliga side were definitely on the wrong end of a bad decision in the closing seconds when Matthijs de Ligt had the ball in the back of the net in the 103rd minute only for play to be stopped after the linesman indicated that Noussair Mazraoui was offside the build-up.
He wasn’t.
Within minutes of the full-time whistle, criticism was quickly aimed towards outgoing Bayern boss Thomas Tuchel for his decision to take Kane off with five minutes remaining.
That is so easy, not to mention inaccurate, in hindsight.
In fact, as Real got on top, he would have been foolish not to try and shore things up with such little time left.
Ultimately though, there was no denying Real yet again; a club where Champions League highlights appear destiny.
Few would back against Real claiming their 15th European crown next month in what will be their sixth Champions League Final in the past 11 years.
Looking further ahead, just imagine if Davies – who was only on the pitch because of an early injury to Serge Gnabry – joins Kylian Mbappe at Carlo Ancelotti’s aces next season!
Talking of Ancelotti, how sweet this must have been.
If the veteran Italian does have a blot on his quite brilliant managerial career, it came during a spell at Bayern where he won the title in his only full season before being dismissed less than two months into the next campaign.
For such an esteemed coach to be sacked after only 14 months, amid reports of divides in the dressing room and the boardroom, the coach increasingly isolated and undermined, would have hurt a man who, throughout his career, has had a special capacity to handle everyone from Cristiano Ronaldo, Marco van Basten and Zinedine Zidane to Silvio Berlusconi and Roman Abramovich.
Yes, the Italian remained friends with those who effectively dismissed him from Bayern but, on the eve of this tie, Ancelotti said he was on the “good side” of this grandest of rivalries and revealed the Bavarian club did not support him when he was coach.
He will have enjoyed this!
Key statistics
Overall, Real have won 13 of their meetings with 11 Bayern successes in the 28 meetings.
A total of 874 goals have been scored in those contests with Los Blancos scoring 45 of those.
In the knockout phase of the Champions League, Real Madrid have got past Bayern on eight out of 13 occasions, including the last four knockout meetings between the two teams.
Bayern have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last 17 matches against Real.
What’s next?
It’s back to the final domestic duties of the season for both these clubs now.
Newly crowned Spanish champions Real have four La Liga matches remaining, beginning at Granada who need to win to have any chance of staying up.
That’s on Saturday teatime followed by a home match against Alaves next Tuesday (May 14).
Bayern, meanwhile, have two Bundesliga games left, Wolfsburg at home on Sunday before a final day trip to Hoffenheim, knowing four points will guarantee them the runners-up spot.
Of course, what date looms most of all is the Champions League at Wembley on June 1. Borussia Dortmund await Real.
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