Real Madrid failed as a team, says Varane

The France international feels the defence was not the only culprit in los Blancos’ loss, while Xabi Alonso believes they can still progress to the final

Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane believes that Wednesday’s 4-1 Champions League defeat against Borussia Dortmund was the result of team failure rather than just poor defending.

BVB striker Robert Lewandowski netted four times to help the Bundesliga side to a crucial home win in the first leg of the semi-final tie, prompting Jose Mourinho to blame Madrid’s defence for the loss at Signal Iduna Park.

Nevertheless, Varane disagrees with his coach and feels the entire team was to blame for the loss in Dortmund.

“It’s more a team failure than an individual one. Lewandowski played really well and we failed to stop him,” Varane was quoted as saying on the official Uefa website.

“We didn’t expect a result like this. We expected a much more positive result.

“We approached the game with plenty of ambition, but we went down to a very aggressive team who were compact and gave us no space.”

Xabi Alonso, meanwhile, admitted that Madrid were outplayed by Jurgen Klopp’s men, but believes they can still turn things around.

“Borussia competed better than us and we have to learn for the next match because we have little margin for error,” the midfielder told reporters.

“We can do it in the second match at home, even though we are not happy with this match right now. We have six days to wait and we can turn this result around.”

The result at the Santiago Bernabeu takes place at April 30.

Kaka cost more than the whole BVB team – Dortmund show Real Madrid how to win without money

Jurgen Klopp’s side humbled the Spanish champions at Signal Iduna Park on Wednesday despite their meagre transfer budget and chequered financial past

COMMENT
By Enis Koylu

It’s been a seismic week for European football. Tuesday was Bayern Munich’s day. With a 4-0 win over Barcelona and the audacious capture of Mario Gotze from arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund, it seemed as though the future was theirs and BVB would fall away.

Wednesday was entirely different though. With La Liga still reeling from the extraordinary result the night before, Real Madrid had the chance to restore Spanish pride at Signal Iduna Park. But Jurgen Klopp’s side proved their worth, running out 4-1 winners over the Spanish champions.

What Dortmund have done in recent years is nothing short of phenomenal. On the brink of complete bankruptcy less than a decade ago, they now have a foot in the door of the Champions League final – and it is all their own work.

The deposed German champions have not had the benefit of a billionaire benefactor or a big-name coaching appointment – indeed many had severe doubts that Klopp would be able to lift the club back into the upper-echelons of the Bundesliga. What they’ve done since then is show the true value of spirit.

Yellow fever | BVB have made a statement to all of Europe this season

In many ways, BVB are the complete antithesis of Madrid. A club famed for their Galacticos projects, the Spanish giants have made a habit of buying the best players on the planet. From Alfredo Di Stefano to Cristiano Ronaldo, a swathe of the game’s greatest-ever players have plied their trade at the Santiago Bernabeu at some point or another.

The current Borussia Dortmund side, however, are based around youth. Nuri Sahin, the mastermind behind their 2011 Bundesliga triumph was a local boy who came through the club’s academy and, barring a brief loan spell in the Eredivisie, spent his whole career at the Westfalenstadion before winning a move (ironically) to Madrid.

The next season, without the Turkey international, they had Shinji Kagawa and Robert Lewandowski, bought for a combined €5.1 million, step up to the plate to deliver a second successive title and record a best-ever points tally.

 BVB’S STARTING XI
Weidenfeller
Pisczek
Subotic
Hummels
Schmelzer
Gundogan
Bender
Kuba
Gotze
Reus
Lewandowski
Total
Free
Free
€4.5m
€4.2m
Free
€5.5
€1.5
€3.05
Free
€17.1m
€4.75
€40.6m
 MADRID’S STARTING XI
Lopez
Ramos
Pepe
Varane
Coentrao
Khedira
Alonso
Ozil
Modric
Ronaldo
Higuain
Total
€3.5m
€27m
€30m
€10m
€30m
€14m
€35.4m
€18m
€30m
€94m
€12m
€303.9m

Of course, while BVB were enjoying domestic glory, so were Madrid. Led by the €94m Cristiano Ronaldo, who was ably backed up by other big-money acquisitions such as Karim Benzema, Fabio Coentrao, Sergio Ramos, Xabi Alonso and Angel Di Maria, los Blancos smashed a host of domestic records themselves as they ended Barca’s dominance in Spain.

And you would think that a meeting between two clubs who had enjoyed such great seasons would be an even affair, but it wasn’t. Dortmund pressed and harried their opponents into submission, with Lewandowski, Ilkay Gundogan and Marco Reus delivering superb performances.

It was a true humiliation for Madrid, a team assembled to win a 10th Champions League title. Luka Modric, their major signing of the summer for a hefty €30m was anonymous throughout, nullified and outshone by Gundogan, who cost BVB one sixth of that price.

And, the ridiculous thing is, the Croat was a meagre signing by their standards. Kaka, a player limited to just 10 starts this season, cost more than the entire Dortmund team put together. Mats Hummels, Reus and Gotze combined earn as much as Cristiano Ronaldo does.

As their Decima dream lays in tatters, Madrid may well look at Dortmund in envy. They may be valued at almost twice their German counterparts (€475m to €254m) but they cannot replicate what the minnows have: spirit, passion and togetherness.

Dortmund’s story is one to provide any club with hope. En route to their likely Champions League final, they have disposed of Manchester City and Malaga, two teams backed by Emirati money, and Gazprom-funded Shakhtar Donetsk.

If they were to go on to beat Bayern in the final of Europe’s elite competition, it would almost be poetic. The Bavarians have won the battle for Germany this season and looked to have won the war with the signing of Gotze, but winning the Champions League would be a victory for the everyman.

The title has been monopolised by the economic elite in recent years, with Chelsea, Barcelona, Manchester United and AC Milan among the recent winners, but BVB would be a breath of fresh air, particularly with the Financial Fair Play era coming.

Money can buy you star players, but it can’t buy you echte Liebe.

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Germany humbles Spain to leave Mourinho on the brink

Borussia Dortmund matched Bayern Munich’s brilliance against Barcelona with a stunning show of their own versus Real Madrid, as the Portuguese moves closer to a summer exit

COMMENT
By Ben Hayward | Spanish Football Writer

Spain stands in Germany’s significant shadow. Ravaged by a fierce financial crisis, high unemployment and dimishining social conditions, the Iberian nation faces an uncertain future as Deutschland dictates the European economy, with continental control centred in Berlin these days and certainly not in Madrid or Barcelona. Football had always been different. Not now. 

When the draw for the Champions League semi-finals was made earlier this month, it was quickly noted how the two Spanish sides could meet in a high-profile Clasico clash at Wembley in May. Few, it seemed, held out much hope for an all-German Klassiker between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. Even less expected what followed on Tuesday and Wednesday as the Bundesliga bullied La Liga and smashed eight goals past the two teams considered to be Europe’s finest, with just one in reply: Germany 8-1 Spain.

The combined final score in those two first-leg fixtures tells a tale of German greatness, Spanish stagnation and a significant shift in power among Europe’s elite on the football field. The Bundesliga handed a harsh lesson to the Primera Division this week and it is now Bayern and Dortmund who look set to rule on the continent, not Barca or Madrid.

Bayern’s spectacular season meant many made the Bavarians slight favourites to edge out Barcelona in the teams’ semi-final tie. What came next, however, was incredible as Jupp Heynckes’ men thrashed the team often dubbed the best in history, leaving the Catalans to pick up the pieces. Indeed, with Barca seemingly in decline, the result and nature of the game itself seemed to represent a changing of the guard at Europe’s top table.

And exactly 24 hours later, Dortmund did precisely the same to Real Madrid with a stunning show of their own. “What Bayern are doing to Barcelona, we will do to Real Madrid,” Robert Lewandowski had written on social media during the clash between Bavarians and Catalans on Tuesday. And he was true to his word.

Lewandowski scored all four goals for a devastating Dortmund side as Madrid fell apart alarmingly in tne type of beating suffered so rarely by a Jose Mourinho team. “There is hope for the second leg,” the Portuguese claimed afterwards. Not very much, however.

With Angel Di Maria left out after attending the birth of his daughter before rushing back to Germany and having barely slept, Mourinho’s men lacked width in midfield and, like Barca the previous night, simply couldn’t cope with the Germans’ incredible intensity.

Like Bayern, Dortmund pressed powerfully and even though Cristiano Ronaldo’s 43rd-minute leveller looked to have given Madrid a psychological edge just before the break, it proved to be anything but the case as Lewandowski added three more in the 50th, 55th and 66th minutes.

There were problems all over the pitch for Madrid. Pepe was at fault for two or even three of the goals, full-backs Fabio Coentrao and Sergio Ramos were unable to push forward and aid the midfield, Xabi Alonso was uncharacteristically poor and conceded a penalty with a clumsy challenge. Luka Modric was overrun in the middle, Mesut Ozil imprecise, Gonzalo Higuain ineffective and Ronaldo unable to exert his influence in dangerous areas apart from the goal and one late effort which was smothered by Roman Weidenfeller.

Before the game, Mourinho had said he hoped “justice would be done” for his players after they were defeated in the 2011 and 2012 semi-finals. But justice was done on Wednesday – and Dortmund deserved their wonderful win, with Jurgen Klopp later claiming the triumph for his €29 million team over €345m Madrid was “like Robin Hood taking from the rich”.

Madrid have failed to reach the final of Europe’s premier club competition since their last continental crown, in 2002, while Barcelona have not featured in the showpiece since their 2011 success. And barring huge surprises, neither will be in it this time. Last term, Madrid were edged out by Bayern on penalties in the semi-finals, while Barca suffered a freak loss to Chelsea in the last four.

Then, it seemed the best two teams had lost. Not now. This time, Spain’s sides were overwhelmingly outclassed by the brilliance of two great German teams. So as Pep Guardiola takes over at the Allianz Arena and seeks to build a dynasty at Bayern, while Klopp stays to continue his wonderful work at Dortmund, it is the Bundesliga and not the Primera Division which now houses Europe’s elite. Mourinho, meanwhile, moves a step closer to the exit door at the Bernabeu, under pressure from this latest loss (the club’s 10th of the season) amid reports from Bild late last night that he will rejoin Chelsea this summer. Not the happy ending, or La Decima, that anyone at Madrid had been hoping for.

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Garay, Gaitan & Matic, the Benfica stars who Europe's giants will look to lure this summer

The Eagles continue to acquire some of the world’s finest young talent before selling them on for huge profits and we take a look at their latest batch of profitable prospects

COMMENT
By Rupert Fryer

Much like Liga rivals Porto, Benfica have excelled in football’s modern marketplace. Adapting to their surroundings with success both on the pitch and the balance sheets, they too have learned to utilise the eternal pool of talent to be found in South America, with the club’s vast team of scouts endlessly combing the continent in search of the next Ramires, David Luiz or Angel Di Maria.

However the Eagles have proved themselves less inclined to limit their shopping trips to a single continent, having also found value closer to home. The likes of Axel Witsel and Javi Garcia were acquired from European neighbours before being flipped for huge profits and Ola John, Nemanja Matic and Rodrigo could well be set to follow in their footsteps.

Benfica’s transfer market dealings have generated profits of over €100 million since they last lifted the league title in 2010 and, unbeaten so far this campaign, they are well placed to wrestle the championship away from Porto. Jorge Jesus’ side sit four points clear at the top of Liga Sagres with just four matches remaining.

This summer the vultures will swoop once again, and so as O Glorioso go in search of their first major continental title in over half a century since Bela Guttmann’s infamous curse on the club, Goal.com takes a closer look at some of those who will be in the shop window come the end of the current campaign.

NICOLAS GAITAN | FORWARD, 25

Acquired from Boca Juniors for around €8 million in 2010, his immediate success in Portugal came as no surprise to those who had been watching him dazzle La Bombonera crowd alongside Juan Roman Riquelme for two years. Able to operate on either flank or centrally as a playmaker, he boasts the ability to go either side when attacking defenders, has a keen eye for a pass and a fearsome left foot.

Those attributes were certainly on display when he starred in what will likely be his side’s goal of the season last week, twisting and turning to evade two Sporting defenders before playing a quick one-two and drifting over a perfect cross for Rodrigo Lima to volley home.

Manchester United have long been linked with a move for the Argentine, with some members of the English press reporting it as a done deal last year, but Benfica’s asking price of around €25 million may well have scared them off. The fee would do little to quash the interest of Anzhi, however, while Inter, Paris Saint-Germain and Monaco have also been linked with a move for the 25-year-old.

EZEQUIEL GARAY | Defender, 26

Central defender Ezequiel Garay joined from Real Madrid after Benfica expressed an interested while negotiating the sale of Fabio Coentrao to los Blancos. The former Newell’s Old Boys defender had arrived at the Bernabeu from Racing Santander amid much fanfare in 2008, but saw his playing time in the Spanish capital restricted by injuries before failing to break into Jose Mourinho’s first team.

After three years, he needed a move, and has since recaptured the form he showed as a youngster, cementing a place in Alejandro’s Sabella’s Argentina side. He reads the game extremely well, happy to sweep up behind his colleagues, and is very comfortable passing out of defence, though injuries have perhaps cost him some of the pace he was once able to use to recover ground. He is used to playing alongside a tough partner so could fit in well alongside the likes of Nemanja Vidic at Manchester United.

The Red Devils have been heavily linked with a move for the 26-year-old, who recently joined the ranks of super agent Jorge Mendes, in what has been reported as a move to help force through a transfer to the Premier League champions. Barcelona and Chelsea are also said to taking a close look, while Real Madrid are believed to be considering brining him back as they prepare to offload Ricardo Carvalho and Raul Albiol this summer.

NEMANJA MATIC| Midfielder, 24

The big Serbia international made to the move to Portugal as part of the mega-money deal that took Ramires to Chelsea after failing to break into the first team setup at Stamford Bridge and may well be on his way back to the Premier League this summer.

At well over six-foot, the 24-year-old is every bit the contemporary European midfielder, with the lung power and the brute strength to dominate the midfield battleground, equally willing to burst forward or drop deep during transitions. Relatively two-footed, he has often displayed a deft of touch when flicking through balls over the top of opposition defences, but has some work to do in order to make the most of his size in aerial battles.

Matic has really come of age this season, finding a consistency that he has perhaps lacked in the past, and has been widely tipped as not only Benfica’s Player of the Season, but as the finest performer in all of Portugal. Man Utd are said to be front-runners for his signature should he fly the Eagles’ nest and Juventus and Roma have also been linked with the Kosice man, though it will take a hefty bid to persuade the club to let him leave after recently penning a new deal that upped his release clause to €45 milion.

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Pepe: Real Madrid can still make it to Wembley

The Portugal international has not given up hope of making it to the final yet as and believes los Blancos can set the record straight at home

Pepe remains optimistic about Real Madrid’s chances of making it to the Champions League final at the expense of Borussia Dortmund – despite their 4-1 defeat in the first-leg of Wednesday’s semi-final.

Four goals from Robert Lewandowski helped BVB to an impressive home victory, with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring Madrid’s only goal of the game, but Pepe is confident that Jose Mourinho’s men have what it takes to turn things around in the return.

“Obviously we’re not happy with the result tonight, but if there’s one team who can turn this tie around on home turf, it’s us, Real Madrid,” Pepe told uefa.com.

“We need to score three goals in the return leg and that’s not impossible for us. We’ve done it many times before, especially at home.

“We didn’t start either half well on Wednesday and kept making the same old mistakes. If we can sort that out and fight for every minute of the second leg as if it were our last, we can still reach the final.”

Madrid lock horns with city-rivals Atletico at the weekend before turning their attention to Tuesday’s return against BVB at the Santiago Bernabeu.