Real Madrid will look to reach their first Champions League final since 2002 as they visit Munich to defend the 1-0 victory earned at the Santiago Bernabeu. After three consecutive years losing in the semi-finals, Carlo Ancelotti’s men aim to break that bad streak and get a ticket for Lisbon.
Los Blancos will enjoy Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema playing together for the first time in weeks, since the Portuguese and the Welshman have suffered injury problems. With the BBC perfectly fit, Ancelotti looks to score at least one goal, thus forcing Bayern Munich to net three to win the tie.
Fabio Coentrao will very likely start at left-back, despite Marcelo played his first full game on Saturday for the first time since he recovered from his injury. The Portuguese is in a spectacular state of shape and Ancelotti will try to take advantage of it for stopping Arjen Robben.
Pepe will also return to the centre of the defence after resting against Osasuna out of precaution. Meanwhile, Isco is expected to sit on the bench, as Di Maria would move to the left side of midfield, leaving the right side for Bale.
Pep Guardiola could also make changes from the side that started at the Santiago Bernabeu. Mario Gotze is expected to join the forward line, while Javi Martinez and Thomas Muller also have chances of being included among Bayern’s eleven.
Philipp Lahm, who played as a midfielder in Madrid, could switch back to his usual right-back role, sending Rafinha to the bench.
The history between the two clubs would point to a Bayern victory, as they have won nine of their ten meetings in Germany. Yet, Los Blancos earned a draw in 2004’s quarter-finals, knocking the Germans out of the competition.
Possible line-ups:
Bayern Munich: Neuer; Lahm, Dante, Boateng, Alaba; Schweinsteiger, Martinez; Robben, Gotze, Ribery; Mandzukic.
Real Madrid: Casillas; Carvajal, Ramos, Pepe, Coentrao; Modric, Alonso, Di Maria; Bale, Benzema, Ronaldo.
The write-up is a masterpiece. The author knows the two combatants very well and has their history at the tips of his fingers. I only missed what he thinks could be the most probable results. His failure to offer any prediction based on his knowledge of the teams and a clear analysis of the tactics of the two managers, the stamina and mental fortitudes of the players leaves me still very scared of whe direction of victory. My heart is with Madrid but my mind whispers Bayern. In all these I expect a solid performance from both teams.