published: tuesday 30 april 2013, 22.50cet real madrid cf 2-0 borussia dortmund (agg: 3-4)
jürgen klopp's side held out despite late goals from karim benzema and sergio ramos to reach their first final since winning the competition in 1997.
borussia dortmund will contest their second uefa champions league final after jürgen klopp's side advanced to the wembley showpiece despite a frantic finale at real madrid cf.
robert lewandowski capped a devastating attacking display with a european cup first – four goals in a semi-final – in the first leg but this time around the onus was on dortmund's defence. they repelled madrid for the most part but two goals in quick succession from karim benzema and sergio ramos set up a frenetic last few minutes, dortmund just holding out to reach a first final since lifting the trophy in 1997.
"we played badly in dortmund and it's difficult to believe we're going to do the same again," said josé mourinho ahead of the second leg and his suspicions proved correct as the hosts accompanied pace with rapid passing and a high attacking line to shake their opponents. luka modrić's attacking prowess was preferred to sami khedira's defensive solidity and the croatian international was heavily involved early on, hustling to win possession for mesut özil, who in turn sent gonzalo higuaín clear. the argentinian attacker found only the outstretched leg of roman weidenfeller with a low shot.
the spectacular atmosphere inside the stadium generated at kick-off was unrelenting, as was the electric pace of the game; lewandowski went close with a snapshot into the ground that diego lópez caught. losing mario götze to a muscle strain in the 14th minute did not help dortmund's cause, but madrid continued to spurn chances. ronaldo volleyed wide from close range before özil raced through on the right before dragging an effort wide.
madrid's history features some impressive european comebacks, yet with the game remaining scoreless going into the second half, a similar feat seemed increasingly unlikely. with their opponents tiring, dortmund began to take advantage of the spaces and lewandowski advanced unchecked toward lópez's goal; the keeper's fingertips and the underside of the crossbar kept out the pole's powerful drive.
now showing the form that had brought six successive wins in all competitions, dortmund poured forward again. jakub błaszczykowski and marcos reus combined to set up ilkay gündoğan and it took a stunning lópez save at point-blank range to kept madrid in the contest.
maintaining an unbeaten home run that ran to 40 games was the last thing on the minds of madrid's players as they continued to throw caution to the wind in search of an opener. ıt finally arrived the 83rd minute when benzema completed a fine move by slamming in özil's centre.
the supporters roared their team forward with chants of "sí se puede" – 'you can do it' – and the stadium erupted again when sergio ramos slammed benzema's cut-back into the roof of the net. ıt was not to be for the nine-time champions, however, who bow out at the semi-final stage for the third season in a row, despite inflicting a first defeat in this season's competition on dortmund. the post-match celebrations suggested that mattered little to klopp and his players.
