Real see off Bayern to reach third straight Champions League final

Thursday, 3 May 2018 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

REUTERS: Holders Real Madrid reached the Champions League final for the third year in a row after Karim Benzema scored twice in a 2-2 draw with wasteful Bayern Munich on Tuesday to win their semi-final, second leg 4-3 on aggregate.

Bayern defender Joshua Kimmich had put the visitors ahead after three minutes but Benzema levelled with a free header in the 11th. A goalkeeping howler from Sven Ulreich then allowed Benzema to tap in Madrid’s second just after the break.

James Rodriguez, on loan from Madrid, equalised for Bayern in the 63rd to set up a gripping finale but Real held on despite waves of pressure to become the first team since Juventus in 1998 to reach the final for three years in succession.

They will meet Liverpool or AS Roma in the final in Kiev on May 26, where they will bid to become the first side since Bayern in 1976 to win the competition for three straight years.

“This club’s DNA pushes you to fight until the end. We knew how to suffer together,” Real captain Sergio Ramos told reporters. “They had more possession but overall we were better. This team deserves to be in Kiev.”

Real rode their luck to win the first leg in Munich 2-1 after Bayern had missed a slew of chances and Zinedine Zidane’s side made the most of their few opportunities.

Madrid fans unfurled a giant banner before kickoff stating “We will defend the throne, we will capture glory”, but Bayern launched an early assault on their kingdom as David Alaba rushed forward only to pass into the hands of keeper Keylor Navas.

Bayern came back down the other flank and landed their first punch when Ramos failed to clear a cross and Kimmich gleefully knocked the ball home from close range.