Relieved Dortmund survive at Real to reach final

Thursday, 2 May 2013 00:01 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Reuters: Borussia Dortmund survived a stirring Real Madrid fightback to reach the Champions League final on Tuesday with a 4-3 aggregate victory despite losing 2-0 after conceding late goals at an electric Bernabeu.

Real looked down and out before substitute Karim Benzema scored from close range in the 83rd minute and Sergio Ramos struck five minutes later but with the home fans going wild as they urged their team forward Dortmund held on.

Jose Mourinho’s Real team had missed several early chances before Dortmund settled and as the hosts committed men forward in the second half the visitors squandered several opportunities of their own before their defence was breached twice.

Dortmund, the European champions in 1997 on their only appearance in the final, will play German rivals Bayern Munich or Barcelona on 25 May showpiece at Wembley stadium. Barca trail 4-0 heading into Wednesday’s second leg at the Nou Camp. “They really put pressure on us and we let in two goals towards the end and then it really became tense,” Dortmund substitute Kevin Grosskreutz told Sky Television. “But we have a great squad, super fans such a great club we just deserved to go through.”

With Spanish King Juan Carlos watching from the VIP tribune and chants of ‘Yes we can’ echoing around Real’s giant arena, the home supporters unveiled an enormous mosaic depicting the Champions League trophy before kick off.