Bayern Munich draw Atletico Madrid in semifinals
April 15, 2016
In 1974, Bayern lifted their first European Cup after beating Atletico Madrid in Brussels. It is the only final to have to be replayed, for penalty shoot-outs had not yet been adopted for UEFA club competitions. In 2016, the reigning German champions will need to overcome Atleti over two games once again, this time to reach their first final since their 2013 treble.
In the semifinal, Madrid will be the hosts for the first leg on April 27, with the return leg in Munich on May 3. The draw allowed Bayern coach Pep Guardiola to avoid his future employers, Manchester City, who drew Real Madrid on Friday.
For the third year in a row, the German club is matched up with a Spanish giant in the semis. Bayern lost to Barcelona and Real Madrid in each of the last two years, both clubs put five past the Bavarians. Also, both went on to win the final after advancing past Bayern, Real Madrid lifting their 10th European Cup and/or Champions League in 2014, and Barcelona completing their second European treble in 2015.
Bayern are currently three wins away from wrapping up their fourth-consecutive Bundesliga title, which would make it three in three years for Guardiola.
Atleti meanwhile have a real title race on their hands, sandwiched between Barcelona and Real Madrid with four points between first and third place in the Spanish top division.
BVB-conquering Liverpool draw Villarreal in Europa League
Fourteen hours on from their comeback victory against Borussia Dortmund, Liverpool got paired with Spanish club Villarreal in the Europa League semifinals. Title holders Sevilla will face Ukraine's Shakhtar Donetsk, who eliminated Schalke earlier in the competition, in the other semifinal.
Liverpool completed a 5-4 aggregate comeback against Dortmund on Thursday in stoppage time, with Jürgen Klopp eliminating his former team and keeping hopes of qualifying for next season's Champions League alive. Klopp has yet to win a European trophy in his career, but his Liverpool are now one of the favorites to win the Europa League.