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THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2018

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MADRID: Juventus’ French midfielder Blaise Matuidi (L) vies with Real Madrid’s Spanish defender Dani Carvajal during the UEFA Champions League quarter-final second leg football match between Real Madrid CF and Juventus FC at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid yesterday.— AFP Ronaldo takes Real into semi-finals Juve staged a sensational comeback in the return

MADRID: Cristiano Ronaldo rescued Real Madrid Champions League appearance before retirement, was larly offering Juve hope. Bale’s night was up at half-time from a shock Champions League exit as his injury-time sent off for his protests. If it is to be the 40-year-old’s REAL EXPOSED as he and Casemiro were replaced by Zidane’s tried- penalty allowed the holders to edge out Juventus in the European farewell, it was a sad way to end. Edin Dzeko needed six minutes to set Roma on their and-trusted duo in Europe of Vazquez and Asensio. most dramatic of quarter-finals yesterday, taking them Yesrterday morning, Madrid newspaper Marca had way against Barcelona, but Juve needed just over one. However, Real’s defensive problems were exposed through despite a 3-1 defeat. revelled in Barcelona’s collapse against Roma the night Sami Khedira hung a deep cross to the back post again on the hour. Douglas Costa crossed from the Real had looked certain to make the last four follow- before with the headline ‘Total Failure’, but Zinedine where Mandzukic powered a header past Navas. right but Navas dropped the ball, allowing Matuidi to ing last week’s 3-0 first-leg victory in Turin, but Juve Zidane’s side came within a whisker of trumping that His second, eight minutes before half-time, was stab home and level the tie. staged a sensational comeback in the return at the with an emphatic loss on their own patch. almost a carbon copy. This time it was substitute Isco drove towards the bottom corner but Buffon’s Santiago Bernabeu. Mario Mandzukic’s two first-half Real conceded the opener after just 76 seconds, the Stephan Lichtsteiner, on for Mattia De Sciglio, who was hand was there and the game looked to be drifting headers kept the dream alive before Blaise Matuidi fastest they have ever conceded at home in the given too much space by Marcelo to cross. Again towards extra-time until the 93rd minute. Hanging in capitalised on a Keylor Navas error to pull the Italians Champions League. But Ronaldo came up trumps Mandzukic jumped higher than Dani Carvajal as he the air at the back post, Ronaldo nodded down to level with half an hour left. again, scoring in his 11th consecutive fixture in this nodded between Navas’ right hand and the near post. Vazquez who looked certain to score from five yards But, just as a thrilling second leg looked to be head- competition, extending his own record, and keeping In between, Real had dictated possession and creat- before Medhi Benatia desperately challenged him ing for extra time, English referee Michael Oliver Real on course for a third consecutive European tri- ed chances of their own, but Buffon was in imperious from behind. Oliver pointed to the spot much and in awarded Real a penalty in stoppage time. With the umph. Zidane had handed Gareth Bale his first form. Just after Mandzukic got his second goal, Raphael the ensuing chaos, Buffon was sent off for his game in the 97th minute, Ronaldo made no mistake Champions League start since September but this was Varane rattled the crossbar with a header to which protests. Wojciech Szczesny came on to face the from 12 yards, ensuring a 3-1 defeat on the night but a far from a night of redemption for the Welshman. He Buffon got his fingertips. decisive strike of the game. Ronaldo exhaled and 4-3 win on aggregate. was hauled off at half-time, with Real two down, and Real, though, were shaky at the back, the channel slammed it into the top right-hand corner to take Gianluigi Buffon, making his 125th and perhaps final replaced by Marco Asensio. between Marcelo and 21-year-old Jesus Vallejo regu- Real into the semi-finals. —AFP

the European Cup for the first time since their only pre- Bayern push vious appearance at this stage 60 years ago, still man- aged to snap Heynckes’ 12-game record winning run in the competition. In a physical first half Bayern, fresh past Sevilla from securing the Bundesliga title last weekend, were by far the more dangerous team with Robert into last four Lewandowski and Franck Ribery coming close. Poland forward Lewandowski, who was sporting a swollen eye after some robust defending, also narrowly headed MUNICH: A goalless draw against Sevilla yesterday wide four minutes after the restart. Sevilla at times was enough to send Bayern Munich into the Champions looked to be lacking a sense of urgency and were badly League last four with a 2-1 aggregate victory to keep let down by their final pass, stumbling time and again at their hopes of a treble-winning season alive. the edge of the box and failing to get a shot on target in Bayern, playing in their seventh straight the entire first half. Champions League quarter-final, never needed to hit They did hit the bar with a Correa header on the top form but were in control throughout with the hour and Ever Banega fired narrowly wide a little later largely toothless Spaniards only rarely venturing into as they upped the pressure briefly in search of the two their opponents’ box. goals they needed. As Sevilla ran out of ideas, the The Germans, who last won the treble in 2013 again match ended with a touch of uproar as Correa was under coach Jupp Heynckes, had secured a 2-1 advan- shown a straight red card for a poor and late challenge tage from last week’s first leg in Spain. Sevilla ended on Javi Martinez. Bayern, though, having won 20 of the game with ten men after the dismissal in stoppage their last 21 Champions League matches at home going MUNICH: Javi Bayern Munich’s Spanish midfielder Javier Martinez (L) vies with Sevilla’s French mid- time of Joaquin Correa for a rough challenge. into the game, could once again celebrate a familiar fielder Steven N’Zonzi during the UEFA Champions League quarter-final second leg football match The result, however, meant Sevilla, in the last eight of last-four ticket with a degree of comfort. — Reuters between FC Bayern Munich and Sevilla FC yesterday in Munich.— AFP