Bayern held the mental advantage over their opponents, a perfect record on home soil (eight wins from nine) and winning 10 of their last 18 encounters. Real may have been the favourites with the bookies, but the Bavarians have also claimed victory three times out of four at this stage in the competition. But statistics can only go so far and should never be taken as a guarantee to predict results, the final chapter of the story is always written on the pitch by the better team on that particular day—quite clearly Bayern in the first leg.
Will the slender margin of victory be enough for Bayern in Madrid? Maybe, but the away goal scored by Mesut Ozil could end up being the crucial decider. Although, Mario Gomez's eventual match winner was long overdue, missing several chances prior to his 89th minute strike. Jupp Heynckes was able to beat his former employers with whom he had secured a Champions League trophy back in 1998, before receiving the sack. It was truly a moral boosting performance that featured Bayern dominating large portions of the match, casting some doubt in their opponent’s minds—not that it would ever be acknowledged.
There was of course some room for criticism of Howard Webb's decisions in the match. Should he have booked Franck Ribery for diving in the 16th minute to send a message to the players moving forward? That would have been harsh, considering Sergio Ramos did use his hand to obstruct and tug at Ribery's jersey, even if he did easily go to ground. The goal that followed caused even more controversy, with Luis Gustavo clearly offside and jumping to avoid the shot that beat Iker Casillas. Was he interfering with the play for the whistle to be blown? It happened so fast, even the keeper failed to notice, neither did any Real players raise their hands in protest—being a decision you would hate to be called against but happy to be counted in your favour. Webb denied another cry for a penalty on Gomez minutes before his eventual winner—correctly seeing Ramos' perfectly timed tackle.
Other minor talking points came from dangerous tackles from both sides, Arjen Robben could have been sent off for his studs showing attempt to block a Fabio Coentrao clearance in the first half—escaping with a caution for recklessness instead of intent to injure. However, Marcelo should have seen red for his deliberate tackle/kick from behind on Thomas Muller—an act built purely out of frustration.
"The past is all about meaningless numbers," Jose Mourinho said. "History will not play a factor. This will be a different match from the previous ones". Unfortunately, for the self-proclaimed "Special One", the final result was exactly how history would have predicted it to end. The loss ended los blancos unbeaten European run this season and extended their awful record on German soil to one win in 23 attempts.
Did Real Madrid overcome their German jinx?
The jinx continues for Real, conceding the late goal just before extra time. It looked as if Mourinho would escape the Allianz Arena with the best possible result other than a victory, but Gomez had other ideas—earning his team the win and slight advantage going into the return leg at the Bernabeu. Mourinho looked visibly frustrated at some of the officiating, but made point not to criticize the refereeing in his post-match comments, remaining confident that his side can earn the result needed at the Bernabeu and insinuating Real would be returning to the Allianz Arena next month.
Which club benefitted from giving their stars a rest over the weekend?
Both teams were shot out of cannon and looked refreshed and ready to do battle. If you were to look at the key players who were rested from both sides and their performance on the night—Bayern win this category. Ribery, Gomez and Philipp Lahm were the stand-out contributors and had a much stronger influence in the match over their counterparts. Angel di Maria and Karim Benzema were decent contributors, but nowhere near the same level on the night—surprisingly Kaka was left unused in consecutive matches.
Man of the match goes too...
Obviously, the spotlight belonged to Ribery. From the opening whistle he was the creative drive behind most of Bayern's movement up the field, and was no slouch tracking back to pressure the ball carrier. The Frenchman was all over the pitch and looked like a man possessed, overshadowing a rather forgettable performance by Real's top marksman Cristiano Ronaldo--spending more time on the ground complaining about fouls that did not go his way. Ribery is in remarkable form, fully focused on returning to the Allianz Arena and guiding Bayern to a fifth European Cup—now that the league is out of reach.
Honorable mention goes too...
Mario Gomes gets the nod, fully deserving of the match winner after missing a handful of chances beforehand. The German striker took his tally to 12 in the tournament, not including the one he scored in the playoff round—putting him two behind Lionel Messi in the golden boot chase.
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