Real Madrid have kept alive their dream of a record-extending 11th European crown when Javier Hernandez’s late strike against 10-man Atletico Madrid secured a 1-0 win and a place in the Champions League semi-finals.
After last week’s first leg at the Calderon ended 0-0, a tense return at the Bernabeu appeared to be heading for extra time until James Rodriguez slipped a pass through to Cristiano Ronaldo in the 88th minute.
The Portugal forward unselfishly squared for Hernandez and the Mexican striker stroked the ball past Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak to secure a 1-0 aggregate victory, Real’s first win over Atletico in eight matches this season.
It was a bitter blow for Atletico, who went toe to toe with the team that beat them in last year’s final, but after Turkish playmaker Arda Turan was dismissed for a second booking 14 minutes from time and Hernandez applied the killer blow.
Real coach Carlo Ancelotti, missing injured regulars Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema and Luka Modric, started with Hernandez up front with Ronaldo and centre-back Sergio Ramos pushed forward into a defensive midfield role.
Seeking to become the first team to retain the trophy in the Champions League era, Real had the upper hand in terms of possession and chances in a tight first half.
Ronaldo forced a good save from Oblak with a 32nd-minute free-kick before racing through with a clear site of goal a minute before half-time.
Atletico hopes suffered a massive blow when Arda picked up a second yellow for a foot-up challenge on Ramos and he was distraught as he trudged off to a cacophony of whistles.
Barcelona and Bayern Munich had their names put in the pot for the semi-final draw yesterday, and Juventus joined the final four after holding out for a 0-0 draw with Monaco in their second leg.
A trademark display of grit and resilience earned Juventus a goalless draw in Monaco as the Italian side qualified for the semis for the first time since 2003 with a 1-0 aggregate victory.
Juventus, the first Italian team to reach the last four of Europe’s premier club competition since Inter Milan in 2010, were under the cosh throughout but held firm against a Monaco side that lacked the experience and cutting edge to overturn a 1-0 deficit from the first leg.
The hosts, who eliminated Arsenal in the previous round, dominated possession and Geoffrey Kondogbia was a big influence in midfield, but Leonardo Jardim’s side lacked the guile to penetrate Juventus’ massed defensive ranks.
Juventus, which played the second leg without injured midfielder Paul Pogba, reached the final in 2003, before losing to AC Milan on penalties.
It was a case of youth versus experience as Juventus’ Andrea Pirlo and Patrice Evra had 30 more Champions League appearances than the whole home side’s starting team.
Source: Reuters