Good evening! Thank you very much for joining
Sports Mole for tonight's
Champions League semi-final second leg between
Real Madrid and
Bayern Munich at the Bernabeu!
Bayern have it all to do this evening as they look to overturn a 2-1 deficit from the home first leg, leaving them needing at least two goals in the Spanish capital tonight. The Germans have scored goals all season, though, and Madrid - bidding for a third successive Champions League title - only need to look to their most recent home game in the competition for reason not to be complacent.
We will have a close look at both teams in a short while, but first let's check out the team news...
REAL MADRID STARTING XI: Navas; Vazquez, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo; Kroos, Modric, Kovacic, Asensio; Benzema, Ronaldo
REAL MADRID SUBS: Casilla, Nacho, Bale, Casemiro, Theo, Mayoral, Ceballos
BAYERN MUNICH STARTING XI: Ulreich; Kimmich, Sule, Hummels, Alaba; Tolisso, Thiago, Rodriguez, Muller, Ribery; Lewandowski
BAYERN MUNICH SUBS: Starke, Wagner, Martinez, Rafinha, Mai, Rudy, Dorsch
What can we make of those two teams, then?
Well, the headline news as far as the home side are concerned is that Gareth Bale once again misses out, with the Welshman named on the bench for the second leg just like he was for the first. Zinedine Zidane seems to have lost a bit of faith in the winger and is not selecting him for the biggest games, although Bale is still reportedly happy at the club despite falling down the pecking order.
Karim Benzema does return to the starting lineup having himself missed out last week, though, and he is expected to lead the line alongside Cristiano Ronaldo despite a relatively poor season in the goalscoring stakes.
One man who never seems to have a poor season in the goalscoring stakes is Cristiano Ronaldo, and his form so far in 2018 has been amongst the very best of his illustrious career. The 33-year-old comes into this match having scored 26 goals in his last 16 games for Madrid, and he has scored in every Champions League game this season prior to last week's first leg.
Indeed, he has 15 Champions League goals for the season already, and the only person in the history of the competition to have bettered that tally in a single campaign is Ronaldo himself, scoring 17 in 2013-14 and 16 in 2015-16. He has scored a whopping 25 goals in his last 16 Champions League outings - including that overhead stunner against Juventus in the last round.
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We could spend the next 50 minutes until kickoff talking about Ronaldo's achievements, but his record against Bayern Munich is definitely worth a mention, despite drawing a rare blank in the first leg.
The Portuguese talisman has scored seven goals in his last four appearances against the Bavarians - including five of his side's six goals in the quarter-final last season - and nine in seven matches against Bayern overall. The only player to have netted more goals against a single opponent in Champions League history is once again Ronaldo himself, who has notched 10 against Juventus.
This will be Ronaldo's 152nd Champions League appearance, incidentally, which takes him above Xavi and behind only Iker Casillas in the all-time list.
A more unlikely source of goals for Madrid so far in this competition has been Marcelo, whose goal in the first leg means that he has scored in all three knockout ties this season, while all of his last five Champions League goals have come in the knockout stages.
On the opposite side of defence, Lucas Vazquez is chosen to play at right-back with Dani Carvajal having picked up a hamstring injury in the first leg. In all Zidane has made three changes from that first leg, with match-winner Asensio, Benzema and Kovacic handed starts while Carvajal, Casemiro and Isco drop out.
For Bayern, they have been severely hampered by injuries at the worst possible time ahead of this tie, with a host of key players - including Arjen Robben, Jerome Boateng, Manuel Neuer, Arturo Vidal and Kingsley Coman all unavailable for this tie.
Bayern do still, of course, have plenty of talent in their starting lineup, but their squad is being stretched to the max and this is certainly not a full-strength Bayern which travels to the Bernabeu tonight.
The good news on the injury front is that David Alaba is back from injury and starts this evening in place of Rafinha, whose mistake in the first leg could prove to be the most costly of the lot.
That is one of four changes made by Jupp Heynckes to the first leg, with Sule replacing the injured Boateng, Tolisso coming in for Martinez and Thiago taking Robben's place. All of those three picked up injuries which forced them off the pitch in the first leg, although Martinez is deemed fit enough for a place on the bench tonight.
Bayern will be looking to Robert Lewandowski to provide their main attacking threat today, with the Pole having scored 39 goals in all competitions already this season - including 18 in 18 outings so far this calendar year.
However, over the course of the season his away record stands at 13 goals in 21 games, compared to 25 goals in 22 home outings, so he is clearly better at the Allianz Arena. He has also failed to score in his past four Champions League games, which is his longest such drought with the club and his joint-longest ever.
Madrid will still be wary of him, though, with Lewandowski having scored six goals in his seven previous meetings with Los Blancos - including a four-goal haul in one match during his time at Dortmund.
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Surprisingly it is
Joshua Kimmich who has been directly involved in more Champions League goals than any other Bayern Munich player this season, with three goals - including one in the first leg - and three assists.
The visitors will also be hoping for the likes of James Rodriguez - currently on loan from Real Madrid - and Franck Ribery - arguably Bayern's standout player of the first leg - to provide the goals which they need to progress.
There is no doubt that Madrid come into this match in the driving seat, though, and with a Champions League record like theirs - particularly in recent years - it would be a major surprise if they let this one slip from this position, even against opposition of Bayern's calibre.
Of course, you only need to look back as far as the last round for what can happen in this competition when Juventus almost pulled off a remarkable turnaround at the Bernabeu, only for Ronaldo's controversial 97th-minute penalty to send Madrid through to the last four without the need for extra time.
Bayern must surely take hope from that result, with Juventus coming so close to overturning a deficit even greater than the one the German's find themselves with tonight, but at the same time Madrid should also learn from it, and they always find a way to win.
Zidane's side were nowhere near their best in the first leg of this tie - and in truth they were fortunate to come away with anything given how many chances Bayern had - but they ground out a win and now find themselves on the brink of a third successive final.
It sounds bonkers to say about a manager who has never been knocked out of Europe, is the first manager to retain this trophy in the Champions League era and could this season become only the third manager in history to lift the trophy three times, but Zidane could well find his job on the line this evening.
Madrid's domestic campaign has been poor, and they have already surrendered their title to Barcelona ahead of Sunday's Clasico, so they really need this Champions League title to salvage their season. Madrid is a club which demands success and silverware, and winning this trophy may be the only way for Zidane to keep his job.
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Madrid are bidding to become the first team to win this trophy three years in a row since Bayern themselves achieved the feat from 1974 to 1976, and if they do make it all the way then it would be hard to argue against them deserving it.
The two-time defending champions have had a very difficult run to this stage, being drawn against Tottenham and Borussia Dortmund in the group stages - where they only finished second - and then facing tournament favourites PSG in the last 16.
Madrid won both legs of that tie to progress through 5-2 on aggregate, and then sealed that nail-biting win over Juventus in the last round. Having already seen off the French and Italian champions, they are now looking to do the same to the German champions.
Madrid can no longer be crowned Spanish champions this season, of course, but they can still prevent their bitter rivals Barcelona from going through an entire season unbeaten when the two sides face off in El Clasico on Sunday.
In terms of what is actually on the line in terms of points and trophies, it is one of the less important Clasicos in recent years, but it is a fixture which always brings with it huge importance even with nothing on the line. Madrid have spiced things up even more by saying that they will not give the newly-crowned champions a guard of honour at the Camp Nou, and victory tonight should send them to Catalonia full of confidence.
One concern for Madrid heading into this match will be that they have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their last six matches across all competitions, and have kept only four in their last 26 outings, so there is big hope for Bayern to get at least one away goal tonight.
Indeed, it is a similar story here at the Bernabeu, where it is six matches since their last clean sheet, which also just so happens to be their only one in their last 14 home outings - a run which stretches back to December 9.
Madrid have won 34 and lost just two of their last 41 Champions League home games, though, and have scored at least one goal in every single one of those matches, last failing to find the back of the net here in a 2-0 defeat to Barcelona in April 2011.
Los Blancos have also only ever lost one of the 33 European ties in which they have won the first leg away from home, with that defeat coming back in 1994-95 - against Odense, of all teams, in the third round of the UEFA Cup.
Bayern will certainly take optimism from Madrid's recent defensive record and the question marks over goalkeeper Keylor Navas in particular, and they created enough chances in the first leg to have been in a far more comfortable position than this - they just needed to be more prolific.
Should it be a similar story tonight then you'd have to back Bayern to be more ruthless, though, with the German giants having scored a whopping 74 goals in their 22 fixtures this calendar year. Indeed, they have scored 31 goals in their last nine outings and have found the back of the net four or more times in 11 separate games already in 2018.
There is plenty of firepower for the visitors, then, but they are still up against it tonight. No team has ever overturned a 2-1 home first-leg defeat in the Champions League, and only twice in the competition's history have a team overhauled any home first-leg defeat to win.
Bayern were actually on the wrong end of the most recent example - against Inter Milan in the 2010-11 round of 16 - while the only other occasion it has happened came when Ajax beat Panathinaikos in the 1995-96 semi-finals.
You can never count Bayern Munich out, though, and they have a manager who - like Zidane - is bidding to become only the third boss to lift this trophy three times, after Bob Paisley and Carlo Ancelotti.
Jupp Heynckes initially stepped down as Bayern boss after winning the treble in 2013, but he took over until the end of the season following the sacking of Ancelotti earlier this term and could still claim yet another treble before he retires once again. That would take an unprecedented turnaround here, but he has already clinched a record-breaking sixth successive Bundesliga title with five games to spare and is in the DFB-Pokal final later this month.
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Heynckes - who has won this competition with both Bayern and Real Madrid before - has won 33 of the 38 matches in all competitions since he was reappointed, taking the club into a position not many would have felt was possible after Ancelotti was sacked.
That Ancelotti sacking came in the wake of their 3-0 defeat to PSG in the group stages of this competition, but Bayern had been unbeaten in eight Champions League games since them - including seven wins in a row - before their defeat in the first leg of this tie.
The last time Bayern lost successive Champions League matches was at the hands of Real Madrid in last season's quarter-finals, although they did enough at the Bernabeu to force extra time having - like this year - lost the home first leg 2-1.
A draw in the second leg of their quarter-final with Sevilla means that Bayern are in danger of failing to win three Champions League games in a row for the first time since 2009 tonight, but they have won 12 of their last 13 away games in all competitions, stretching all the way back to November.
Bayern's away record in this competition has also vastly improved this season, with victories in each of their last four such matches since that chastening defeat to PSG in the group stages.
In fact, Bayern have won as many of their last four Champions League away games as they had in their previous 16, although the major concern tonight will be that they have not kept a clean sheet on the road in this competition since December 2015 - a run of 13 which equals their longest ever in the competition.
Bayern have lost five home first legs in UEFA competition before and have gone on to progress from two of those ties, although the most recent of those came in the 1995-96 UEFA Cup. All of their aggregate defeats came after they lost that first leg 2-1 too, against Norwich in 1993-94, Red Star Belgrade in 1990-91 and Real Madrid themselves just last season.
The Bavarians also have a dreadful record against Spanish opposition in recent seasons, having been knocked out of this competition by a La Liga side in each of the last four campaigns - including three times in the semi-finals.
PREDICTION: Right, we're 10 minutes away from kickoff at the Bernabeu, which means that it is time for a prediction!
Bayern certainly have the firepower to trouble Real Madrid tonight - particularly if they are more clinical and Madrid play like they did in the second leg against Juventus - but it is still hard to see past the hosts. It might have been a different story with a full-strength Bayern, but they are missing so many key players that it would be some achievement if they managed to turn this one around.
SPORTS MOLE SAYS: Real Madrid 3-2 Bayern Munich (Madrid win 5-3 on aggregate)
This will be the 26th time that these two sides have met, making it the most-played fixture in European club competition, and incredibly it is the seventh occasion that they have come up against each other in the semi-finals, with Bayern leading that count 4-2 as things stand.
The recent history has been with Madrid, though, with Bayern losing their last six meetings with Los Blancos - their longest ever run against one opponent in European competition. You have to go back to May 2001 - when Giovane Elber score the only goal of the game - for Bayern's last away win against Madrid.
There has been little to separate the two teams in their previous 25 meetings, with Madrid winning 12 to Bayern's 11 and scoring 39 goals to Bayern's 37, while the Spanish outfit also hold the edge in terms of knockout ties with six wins to Bayern's five.
Madrid have been a lot more dominant here at the Bernabeu, though, winning nine and losing just two of their previous 12 matches against Bayern on their own patch. Indeed, against German teams in general Madrid have a fine home record, with 25 wins and only three losses in 33 such matches.
Madrid boast a W17 L8 record in two-legged ties against German opposition - including victories in each of their last six, although their last defeat did come in a semi-final, with Robert Lewandowski scoring four goals for Dortmund in 2012-13.
Bayern's record against Spanish opposition in two-legged ties is split evenly at W10 L10, but away from home they have lost 15 of their 27 previous visits to these shores.
Right, the players are out on the pitch, the anthem is playing and we're almost ready to go for this blockbuster clash. A reminder of the team news before we get started...
REAL MADRID STARTING XI: Navas; Vazquez, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo; Kroos, Modric, Kovacic, Asensio; Benzema, Ronaldo
BAYERN MUNICH STARTING XI: Ulreich; Kimmich, Sule, Hummels, Alaba; Tolisso, Thiago, Rodriguez, Muller, Ribery; Lewandowski
KICKOFF: Here we go, then! Real Madrid get us underway at the Bernabeu for this huge clash! Who can make it through to the Champions League final?
Bayern make their first meaningful break down the left flank as Ribery and Alaba link up before the latter puts a low cross into the middle. It is too close to Navas, though, and he gathers it comfortably.
GOAL! Real Madrid 0-1 Bayern Munich (Joshua Kimmich)
What a start for Bayern Munich! They break the deadlock after only three minutes to make things very interesting indeed!
A cross into the box from Muller is not dealt with very well at all by Madrid and the ball drops at the feet of Kimmich, who sweeps home his finish to get his name on the scoresheet in both legs. Incredible start from Bayern - just what they would have wanted.
Bayern, of course, still need at least one more tonight, but that is about as good a start as they could have hoped for. They have come here to attack, and they have got their reward early on. How can Madrid respond?
Madrid almost hit back quickly as Kroos plays a quick free kick down the right channel for Benzema, who finds himself in space. The Frenchman plays a low pass into the box, but Muller does enough to prevent Ronaldo getting a clean strike at goal.
Some dodgy defending from Bayern as an underhit back-pass forces Ulreich out of his goal, and his clearance is not great either. Kroos collects the ball just inside the Bayern half with Ulreich a long way out of his goal, but he opts against the shot. Bring back Xabi Alonso!
Not bad for a right-back...
GOAL! Real Madrid 1-1 Bayern Munich (Karim Benzema)
We have a game on our hands tonight, folks! Benzema - back in the side after being dropped for the first leg - levels things up on the night and restores Madrid's one-goal aggregate advantage!
It comes from the hosts' first real spell of possession in the Bayern half as Kovacic picks out a lovely diagonal ball to Marcelo, who instantly brings it under his spell. the cross is equally perfect to the back post, where Benzema is unmarked to plant his header into the back of the net.
Bayern are straight back on the front foot after that goal as Lewandowski collects the ball inside the penalty area, but his low pass back inside is cut out and coolly dealt with by Ramos.
Once again the ball breaks loose inside the Real Madrid box after they fail to deal with a cross from the left this time. Neither Lewandowski nor Muller can get a shot away, but that has happened a few times already tonight which will encourage the visitors.
That goal hasn't really changed things for Bayern as they still need a second goal, although now it would only be enough to take them to extra time rather than straight through to the final. Both attacks are looking dangerous so far, though.
Quite a stat this one - and who knew Tottenham held the record in the first place!
Bayern want a penalty as Lewandowski collects a pass from Tolisso before going down under the challenge of Ramos. Muller is adamant, but the referee waves the claims away.
The first leg was sloppy and shambolic at times, but this match has started very well. Some of the defending is still leaving a lot to be desired, but that is making it a very entertaining spectacle for the neutrals!
Ribery slides a clever pass down the left channel for Muller, who decides against going for goal himself and instead pokes a low pass into the middle which Marcelo needs to clear. There are more goals in this one for sure.
It is all Bayern at the moment as they keep Madrid pinned back in their own half. The hosts are having some real trouble defending crosses, and with Lewandowski in the box that spells real danger.
The flow of half-chances has just slowed for now, but it is still being played at a really good tempo and there could be a goal at any moment in this game. It is poised very nicely indeed.
Marcelo has been so clinical in the Champions League knockout stages, but he wastes a really good chance here. Ronaldo slid the ball down the left side of the box for the unmarked Brazilian and he had teammates queuing up for the cross, but he took an unnecessary touch before and the chance goes begging!
The resulting corner is played short and smartly to see Kroos reach the byline, and his low cross beats Ulreich but is cleared by a defender behind him.
Important tracking from Thiago as he follows Asensio all the way back, despite failing with one earlier attempted tackle. Asensio then skips past another defender, but Thiago is able to nip in and mop up the danger.
CHANCE! Good play from Bayern as Ribery dances his way into the box before squeezing a low pass to Muller, who turns smartly before poking the ball towards goal, but it lacks the power to beat Navas. Kimmich was in space, but you cannot blame Muller for going for goal then as it was a crowded area.
CHANCES! More chances for Bayern, but somehow the ball stays out! Hummels strides forward from defence before sliding a ball through for Lewandowski, who drills his low strike too close to Navas when he should do better. The ball loops up and Muller keeps it alive by winning the header, but Rodriguez cannot keep his powerful volley down as he blasts it over an empty net from close range! It wasn't as easy a chance as it might sound, but he still will feel that he should have scored.
Bayern Munich are in control of this match. They are looking the more likely to score and have done since the first whistle, but they simply cannot afford to be wasteful as they were in the first leg. This Real Madrid defence will give away chances.
He gets some stick - and he hasn't been great this season - but this is an impressive record from Benzema...
SAVE! Ronaldo has been fairly quiet so far, but he finally finds himself one on one here against Alaba. He ducks inside onto his left foot and gets a shot away, but Ulreich gets down sharply to turn it past the post.
CLOSE! The resulting corner is met by Ramos at the back post, but his header only finds the side-netting.
This opening 41 minutes has flown by. There is threatening to be a chance every couple of minutes - mostly from Bayern - but still it is somehow only 1-1 as we approach half time.
Zinedine Zidane has not been afraid to make early changes in the past two Champions League games, and he may be thinking of another one here. If this one carries on like it is then it would not be a surprise to see Bayern reach the final tonight.
SHOT! Tolisso gets just a yard of space from around 25 yards out and tries to bend his effort into the top corner, but it flies a few yards wide of the target despite Navas scrambling.
There will be just the one minute of added time at the end of this first half. We want more!
Bayern again want a penalty here as Kimmich's cross hits the hand of Marcelo, but once again the referee says no and Bayern have to settle for a corner.
HALF TIME: Real Madrid 1-1 Bayern Munich (Madrid lead 3-2 on aggregate)
The first half comes to an end, and what a first half it was. While the first leg failed to showcase the best of these two teams, this one certainly is in an attacking sense for sure.
Bayern have been the better team and have created a lot of chances once again, but again they are not making the most of them. It is very finely poised at 1-1 - a scoreline Madrid will be happy with considering how the game has gone - and I would be very surprised if we didn't see more goals in the second half.
Bayern have approached this game in a really positive manner, and they were rewarded after only three minutes when Joshua Kimmich opened the scoring early on - having also scored in the first leg.
Ramos failed to a cut a cross out having attempted an ambitious flick away, and that led to the ball falling kindly at the feet of Kimmich, who swept his finish home.
Madrid responded just eight minutes later, though, levelling things up on the night and restoring their one-goal aggregate advantage courtesy of Karim Benzema's header.
The goal came at the end of a 28-pass move, which including Kovacic's pass out to Marcelo and the Brazilian's subsequent cross to pick out Benzema. The Frenchman has peeled off Alaba and planted his header into the back of the net, although that did not change Bayern's task of needing at least one more goal.
Both sides have created chances aside from those two goals, but the best have fallen the way of Bayern Munich and they will be kicking themselves that they aren't leading at this stage.
Lewandowski, Muller and Tolisso have all threatened, but the best chance went to Rodriguez, who somehow blasted his finish over an empty net from point-blank range - although it did arrive at him quickly.
Real Madrid have spent most of the time on the back foot, but Ronaldo and Ramos have had sights of goal too. The next goal in this match will be crucial, and on the evidence of that first half it is most likely to fall the way of Bayern.
KICKOFF: Bayern Munich get us back underway for the second half!
GOAL! Real Madrid 2-1 Bayern Munich (Karim Benzema)
Oh my word! I cannot quite believe what I have seen here! Less than a minute into this second half and Ulreich has just produced one of the biggest howlers you will ever see - not just at this level but in football overall.
Tolisso's pass back to the keeper looked like selling him short, but Ulreich still looked like getting there first. However, he remembers just in time that he cannot go with his hands, and subsequently tries to readjust but completely misses it with his legs. That allows the ball to run through to Benzema, who is left with the simplest of finishes.
It is an absolute shocker from the keeper - I haven't seen anything like that before, especially in such a big game!
What that goal means is that we can no longer have extra time tonight. Bayern Munich need two goals - without conceding any more - to go through.
After such a high-quality first half, that is some way to start this second half. Bayern looked capable of scoring two more goals in that first half, but their task is so much tougher now.
SAVE! Navas has been questioned a lot this season, but this is a brilliant save. Alaba goes for goal and his effort takes a deflection, but Navas reacts brilliantly to turn the ball around the post.
PENALTY SHOUT! Yet another penalty shout for Bayern, and this may be their best of the lot so far. Lewandowski gets the ball ahead of Ramos, who clatters into him, but nothing is given once more.
CLOSE! Modric whips a beauty of a cross into the box which Benzema is interested in, but Sule does really well to hold the striker off and avoid touching the ball as it flashes just wide of the far post.
CHANCE! Madrid's pressure is growing here, and they should have killed this tie off here! Moments after he was levered away from a dangerous Asensio cross, Ronaldo finds himself on the end of another delivery from Marcelo. Ronaldo is completely unmarked and meets it on the volley, but he blazes it over the bar. Most would have backed him to score that!
The scale and style - if I can use that word - of Ulreich's mistake is hard to explain, so take a look for yourselves here...
Real Madrid had a really good spell then, but Bayern are starting to get themselves in this game again now. It is so finely poised here.
CHANCES! Yet more chances for Bayern as both of their centre-backs have sights of goal in quick succession! First Hummels sees a powerful drive across goal parried away, and after Ribery misses his original kick from the rebound he lays it back to Sule, whose shot from the edge of the box is blocked by Ramos.
YELLOW CARD! Luka Modric becomes the first name in the book this evening for a foul on Thiago.
GOAL! Real Madrid 2-2 Bayern Munich (James Rodriguez)
Bayern Munich have the goal they deserve and it is James Rodriguez - a Real Madrid player - who has got the goal!
Sule, who has been very good tonight, finds himself on the right flank and puts a cross in to James, who meets it with a firm half-volley first time. That effort is blocked by Varane, but he is alive to the loose ball and slides it under Navas from a tight angle. No celebration from James, but everyone else in Bayern colours is making up for that.
YELLOW CARD! Vazquez goes into the book for a foul on Rodriguez.
This has been a sensational match, and it's far from over yet. Bayern just need one more goal with less than 25 minutes remaining!
Better from Lewandowski this time as he launches a quick counter before releasing Ribery, but the winger cannot get his cross away with Muller unmarked in the middle. Vazquez did well there.
Just under 20 minutes remaining now, and this tie hangs in the balance of one goal. Bayern have looked more than capable of getting it, but you simply cannot rule out Madrid.
REAL MADRID SUBS: Something needs to change for Madrid, and Zidane responds with two changes here. The first sees Gareth Bale replace two-goal Benzema, while Casemiro comes on for Kovacic.
CHANCE! Another chance for the visitors as Madrid struggle to deal with a cross into the box! This time it falls to Tolisso, who gets his shot away, but Navas reacts well to parry the ball away.
BAYERN MUNICH SUB: The visitors make a change here as Sandro Wagner replaces Tolisso, who has had a very good game with the exception of his mistake at the start of this second half.
CHANCE! Brilliant defending from Varane again here as he throws himself in the way of Rodriguez's shot just when it looked as though the Colombian would score again. He met a cross on the half-volley, but Varane was there.
Real Madrid do not deserve to win this tie over the two legs on the balance of chances, but as things stand they are still getting the job done. They always seem to do so in this competition.
Brilliant defending from the excellent Sule again as he comes across to thwart Ronaldo.
SAVE! Yet another cross into the box causes problems for Madrid as Alaba's delivery is met by Muller, who towers over Marcelo before seeing his header saved by a scrambling Navas.
The story of this tie so far has been Bayern Munich's mistakes and missed chances. They have nine minutes to rectify that, but as things stand they have really shot themselves in the foot over these two legs.
This is very sporting from Rodriguez - some would say foolish - as he kicks the ball out so a Real Madrid player can receive treatment.
BAYERN MUNICH SUB: Interesting change here from Heynckes as Javi Martinez replaces Rodriguez. An emergency striker, perhaps?
Bale thinks that he is through on goal following a pass from Ronaldo, but he is denied by Ulreich and the flag is up to spare his blushes anyway.
REAL MADRID SUB: The hosts make their third and final change as Nacho replaces Asensio.
YELLOW CARD! Casemiro is the latest player in the book for a cynical challenge on Muller.
This one isn't over yet - there will be five minutes of added time and there could still be more as Navas is down after coming to claim a cross.
CHANCE! Big chance for Bayern to nick this one late on! Hummels rises to meet a corner inside the box, but he glances his header narrowly wide!
SAVE! Navas has been crucial for Madrid tonight. Here he comes off his line to claim a pass from Hummels, just in front of Lewandowski who would have been left with a simple finish!
CHANCE! One final chance for Bayern as Muller almost gets to a long pass forward into the box, but he just can't get on the end of it!
FULL TIME: Real Madrid 2-2 Bayern Munich (Real Madrid win 4-3 on aggregate)
REAL MADRID ARE IN THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL!
Well, what a superb game of football that was. Bayern Munich were by far the better team on the night - and over the two legs in truth - but once again Real Madrid find a way and they will now compete in the final of the Champions League for a third consecutive season.
Bayern will be left ruing a string of missed chances and errors which ultimately cost them over the two legs - including a huge howler from goalkeeper Sven Ulreich tonight. They had enough chances to win the tie quite comfortably, though, so they can only really have themselves to blame for coming away with nothing tonight.
It all started so well for the visitors when Joshua Kimmich broke the deadlock after only three minutes, but Madrid were level just eight minutes later when Benzema nodded Marcelo's cross home at the back post.
The aforementioned howler from Ulreich - which saw him momentarily forget the pass-back rule and try to readjust when it was too late - gifted Benzema a second less than a minute into the second half, but James Rodriguez made things interesting by restoring parity again on the night.
That left Bayern needing just one more goal to progress, but despite some heavy pressure they could not find it as Madrid held on for the 4-3 aggregate victory.
Right, that is all we have time for this evening!
Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's match as Real Madrid hold off Bayern Munich to progress through to the Champions League final following a thriller at the Bernabeu. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction too.
From me, though, it is goodbye for now!
