As Antonio Rudiger successfully scored the fifth penalty in the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal against Manchester City, Real Madrid once again showed their European pedigree to advance to the semifinals of the competition against all odds.
The Premier League side was clearly the most difficult opponent that the Merengues could have faced in the tournament, especially keeping in view the dismal record that Carlo Ancelotti had against them.
Now, most of the euphoria from that victory has cleared up, as Real Madrid are set to face another European giant in the first leg of the semifinal today, i.e., Bayern Munich.
While Manchester City was the most in-form team in the current edition of the competition, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich have clearly been among the two best teams in the history of the premier European competition.
Matches between the two sides have been the stuff of European legend, and the rivalry between the two sides is rightfully dubbed the ‘European Clasico‘.
As the official UEFA website highlights, the two sides have met 26 times in the Champions League up to now, with Real Madrid having the slightest of edges over the Germans.
The Merengues have 12 wins in their matches against Bayern Munich, while the Bavarians have come out as winners in 11 matches. Only 3 of these 26 matches have ended in a draw.
The Vikings also have the edge in the number of goals scored between the two sides, as they have 41 goals to their credit, while Bayern have got on the scoresheet 39 times. Real Madrid legend, Cristiano Ronaldo has the greatest number of goals scored in this tie, 9, while Bayern’s highest scorer has been Giovane Elber, with 4 goals to his name.
In terms of having won the entire tournament, Real Madrid clearly blow Bayern Munich out of the water, as is the case with any other European team. The Merengues have won the competition 14 times, but Bayern also have a very good record as they got their hands on the trophy 6 times.
Both teams have won the title in recent years as well, with Madrid’s last victory coming in the 2021-22 season, while Bayern were the champions in 2019-20.
The last time that the two teams met, Real Madrid were able to edge the Bavarians with a 4-3 victory on aggregate in the semi-finals of the 2017-18 edition, when the Merengues went on to win the competition and complete a historic feat by winning the competition three times in a row.
Madrid had eliminated the Germans in the prior edition as well in the quarter-final stage with a 6-3 scoreline.
However, the most memorable match for most Real Madrid fans would be the one in the 2013-14 season when Cristiano Ronaldo and Sergio Ramos ran riot in the second leg of the semi-final to dismantle Bayern with a 5-0 scoreline on aggregate and thus took the revenge for their elimination at the hands of Bayern in 2011-12 season.
Thus, with most of their recent results coming in their favor, Real Madrid would once again be looking to get the better of their European Clasico rivals. Still, both teams are vastly experienced in the competition, and none of them can be considered to be the favorites.
