Oh wie ist das schön! Dortmund in CL Final

Oh wie ist das schön! Dortmund in CL Final

Borussia Dortmund have put joy in the hearts of every football traditionalist in Europe by reaching the UEFA Champions League final.

The club with the biggest hard core support in Europe, averaging 80,000 at home games, but no multi million Euro owners may have lost 2-0 in Madrid tonight, but will be at England’s Wembley Stadium on an aggregate score of 4-3.

Real Madrid 2 : 0 BVB Dortmund (Dortmund win 4-3 on aggregate)

Match Report by Fraulein Madi Williamson

After a dazzling and dominant performance in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League clash with Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund were on their heels at the Bernabeu and were nearly outdone by Jose Mourinho’s men.

The lineup for Dortmund showed no signs of them “parking the bus” to keep Madrid’s world class attacking force at bay but it was clear that their main man up top, Robert Lewandowski, would not be having as busy of a night as he had last Wednesday.

The man between the posts for Dortmund, Weidenfeller, put on a brilliant performance for the visitors, saving their hides and playing a crucial role in the 0-0 scoreline at half time.

Cristiano Ronaldo was the man to watch in Real Madrid’s attack, but Gonzalo Higuain and Karim Benzema (a second half substitution for the Argentine striker) were also a problem for the Dortmund defense throughout the match.

Angel Di Maria used his wicked pace on the wings to work his way into space and Mesut Ozil seemed to orchestrate the entire attack from his position in Real Madrid’s midfield.

With just three minutes gone in the match Madrid’s attacking players had forced a brilliant save from the tip of Weidenfeller’s boot and some desperate defending from Dortmund’s back four. While the first leg had been all Dortmund in the opening minutes, Madrid were the ones gegenpressing in a diverse and unpredictable attack.

Dortmund’s attacking force took a significant blow early on when their young winger Mario Gotze had to be substituted for Grosskreutz. His absence in the attack was definitely noticeable as Dortmund tried to play up the wings. Dortmund later appreciated the height of Grosskreutz as they defended ten corner kicks from Madrid throughout the game.

At half time it was hard to believe that Madrid hadn’t found the back of the net in the first half. Ozil and Ronaldo had two of the best chances of the game to put Madrid on the scoreboard but the German midfielder sent his shot wide of the target and Ronaldo’s well-timed volley from just three yards out was hammered straight into the chest of Weidenfeller.

With fouls and free kicks flying in all directions, both teams were lucky to not have conceded but Madrid had definitely been the dominant side after being the doormat in the first leg.

In the second half, Dortmund looked more organized in the defense, the back four working as a unit rather than as individual players like they had been in the first half.

Madrid were still attacking up the wings with Essien and Di Maria making screaming runs down the sidelines but Dortmund were starting to squeeze more attacking opportunities and more possession into the game.

Lewandowski had one of the best chances of the half in the 49^th minute when his hammer of a shot banged off the woodwork and away from goal.

As the clock ticked closer and closer to the end of the match for Madrid, they pressed with incredible speed and aggression. Dortmund were certainly on their heels but impressively they battled back to keep the ball out of the back of their net. The real drama started in the 83^rd minute.

It seemed as though it was going to be too late for Madrid and that Dortmund would be able to hold them to a nil nil draw in the legendary Santiago Bernabeu but Karim Benzema, coming in for Higuain in Mourinho’s first round of substitutions, slammed a Mesut Ozil cross into the roof of the net past Weidenfeller.

It was game on in Madrid. The whole city was surely shaking from the rumbling roar of the Madrid fans. Every touch of the ball or pass into space by the home side was urged on by Madridistas desperate for a crack at the Champions League title. Dortmund looked bewildered. In the 88^th minute, the drama peaked as Ramos put another hammer of a shot past Weidenfeller and the full comeback was on. Madrid needed just one goal to go through.

With all hands on deck, Dortmund held on for an agonizingly long finish for lovers of the schwarz und gelb and a short five minutes of stoppage time for the Madrid fans in their pure white jerseys. At the sound of the final whistle, Jurgen Klopp and his men were ecstatic and relieved having secured their tickets to Wembly for the final.

It was heartbreak for Mourinho’s men who came agonizingly close to going through on away goals but the German’s defense had been just strong enough to keep them in the competition. If Bayern Munich hold off Barcelona tomorrow, we could be in for the first all German final in the history of the competition.

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