If Real Madrid wins a third straight Champions League title on May 26 in Kiev, Cristiano Ronaldo and company will have earned every bit of it. Karim Benzema scored two goals for Real Madrid vs Bayern Munich on Tuesday at the Bernabeu as the Merengues advanced to the Champions League final for the third straight year with a 2-2 draw and 4-3 aggregate victory. 

Have you ever heard of the curse of Bela Guttmann? After defeating Real Madrid 5-3 in the final of the 1962 European Cup, Benfica manager Bela Guttmann asked the board of directors for a pay raise. He was denied and left the club, but not before saying, “Not in a hundred years from now will Benfica ever be European champions.” 

The club has since lost eight subsequent European finals.

Poor Sven. All he wanted to do was hang out on the Bayern bench and rack up trophies, but then Manuel Neuer had to go and get injured in September. Now, after another Sven Ulreich howler against Real Madrid on Tuesday, the Bayern Munich backup is making a name for himself in all the wrong ways. 

Just eight minutes after Joshua Kimmich had given Bayern Munich a dream start at the Bernabeu, Real Madrid restored their aggregate lead (3-2) after a sweeping 28-pass move was finally finished off by Karim Benzema.

In order to advance to the Champions League final, Bayern Munich will have to make history at the Bernabeu. The advantage of hosting the second leg is made most apparent by looking at the record of teams who have needed a comeback after dropping the first leg at home. 

Since the 2003-04 season, 18 teams have trailed heading into a Champions League quarterfinal or semifinal second leg on the road. None of those teams have advanced.

In one of the ultimate glamor ties of European club football, it was Real Madrid left back Marcelo who emerged as Wednesday’s Man of the Match in his side’s 2-1 away leg victory over Bayern Munich.

The 29-year-old Brazilian’s day got off to a flyer when opposition winger Arjen Robben was forced off with an injury as early as the 8th minute. The introduction of Thiago Alcantara as his replacement immediately shifted Bayern’s focus to the middle of the park and allowed Marcelo more freedom to get forward on the wing.

It’s 1-1 at halftime in an enthralling UEFA Champions League semifinal between Bayern Munich and Real Madrid at the Allianz Arena, Joshua Kimmich opening the scoring for Bayern in the 28’ before Marcelo’s sweet strike evened things up in the 44’.

Jupp Heynckes has been forced into two early substitutions with both Arjen Robben and Jerome Boateng limping off injured, but Bayern took the lead when Real failed to track the run of Kimmich. The 23-year-old left back then punished Real with a clinical finish. 

So it’s Real Madrid vs. Bayern Munich and Liverpool vs. AS Roma in the Champions League draw for the semifinals on Friday. What immediately jump out are all the storylines and relationships between the two sets of semifinalists. But there’s more to this matchup than player links. 

Sure, Bayern’s James Rodriguez is on loan from Real Madrid and Toni Kroos once plied his trade for the Bavarians. And yes, Salah transferred to Liverpool from Roma last summer.