A week ago, Bayern Munich embarrassed Barcelona in the first leg of the Champions league semifinals with a score of 4-0. Los Cules were expected to put up a better effort at home in the return leg but were embarrassed 3-0 and were eliminated from the tournament by an aggregate 7-0 score.
The big surprise of the game was the absence of Lionel Messi to start the match. In his absense, coach Tito Vilanova started David Villa, Pedro, and Cesc Fabregas as the team's attacking options.
Bayern Munich did not make the mistake that Borussia Dortmund did in its match against Real Madrid. Rather than sit back and absorb pressure, Munich pressured Barcelona from the get go with a clear intention of ragging the clock and avoiding a quick goal from Barcelona. The Spanish team was unable to establish its famous tiki-taka style and the Germans got the better of the runs up and down the field. Without Messi, Barcelona seemed to lack its killer instinct and barely made an entry into the penalty area in the opening 30 minutes of play. Munich failed to generate any real opportunities but the team did not seem to mind. It seemed as if the game plan was to run down the field as often as possible and tire out the Spanish. When the German side saw no openings, they simply kicked the ball up the field and let Barcelona reset.
The second half was a massive letdown for the fans that came to give their squad a lift. Bayern's Arjen Robben received a cross on the right wing, cut into the middle and put the beautiful shot past Barcelona keeper Victor Valdes. Barcelona seemed to let up at this point and Munich's Franck Ribery burst down the left wing almost 10 minutes later and crossed the ball into the middle. Barcelona defender Gerard Pique accidently hit the ball off his knee and into his own net. A little over five minutes later Ribery ran down the left side once more and crossed the ball to an oncoming Thomas Muller who headed the shot in.
Barcelona never really created a substantial chance in the entire game and looked overwhelmed by a stalwart Munich side. Now Bayern will take on German rival Borussia Dortmund in the final on May 25.
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