History-seeking Jose Mourinho of Real Madrid goes into the first of this double-edged tie mindful of Bayern Munich’s superior record over his side in the championship.
Having won the title with two different clubs, Mourinho will set a record of a hat-trick if he lifts the trophy this season but Bayern’s impressive credential stands in his way.
Bayern have won 10 of the 18 competitive fixtures between the two sides over their history, earning the nickname ‘La Bestia Negra’ (the Black Beast, a term to describe their most-feared adversary).
In four previous European Cup semi-finals involving both sides, the German giants prevailed three times (1976, 1987, 2001) to Madrid’s one (2000).
Madrid’s keeper and skipper, Iker Casillas, is the only survivor of the two most recent last-four ties.
The nine-times winners lost at the last 16 stage for six seasons in a row prior to Mourinho’s reign, but have reached successive semi-finals under him.
With “The Special One” in charge, Madrid have lost only one of their last 22 Champions League encounters – the first-leg of last season’s semi-final with Barcelona, and Mourinho refers to that bad-tempered 2-0 defeat as “a game which has a story.”
On his part, Bayern Coach, Jupp Heynckes, who led Madrid to glory in the 1998 Champions League and spent eight years coaching in Spain, says his players should be driven by the prospect of competing in the Champions League final on home soil at the Allianz Arena.
Having lost out in the domestic league title race, Bayern’s focus is on Europe’s elite title.
They have experienced a dip in form, drawing blank for the second consecutive match as their run of 11 straight home wins in all competitions came to an end.