Champions League draw – all German final beckons

The draw for the Champions League semi finals is out and the fates have decreed it serves up a double dosage of Spain vs Germany action, with Bayern Munich taking on Barcelona and Real Madrid facing off with Borussia Dortmund. In the wake of the draw the Spanish clubs share 2/1 favouritism in the Champions Leaue betting from 11/4 Bayern Munich with Coral – Dortmund are 6/1 outsiders.

After both Barcelona and Real Madrid were allotted the home second leg commonly held to be advantageous the prospect of an El Clasico Champions League final is very real. Nine of the 12 sides to have won a knock out tie in this year’s competition played the second leg in front of their own fans and Barca and Real are 8/15 and 2/5 to qualify respectively.

However Jose Mourinho’s Merengues look to be plenty short enough to make their first final since Zinedine Zidane’s sumptuous volley broken Leverkusen hearts back in 2001, given Borussia Dortmund were the aggregate victors of the sides’ group stage clashes.

Madrid were in the midst of a poor run of away form when they lost at Signal Iduna Park back in October and they’re still fallible on the road, going within a whisker of allowing Galatasaray to come back from the dead in the quarter finals. Dortmund are 7/4 to win their home leg and having been one of just five sides to avoid defeat at Santiago Bernabeu this term they’ll fancy their chances of qualifying at 15/8.

The other semi sees the meeting of two sides who fell foul of Champions League winners Chelsea last year and Barcelona are 8/15 favourites to book a ticket for this year’s final at Wembley. Again the Spanish team seems short in the to-qualify market, after a distinctly wobbly passage through this year’s tournament, lit-up only by their 4-0 Camp Nou demolition of AC Milan.

Their adversaries were just too good for a Juventus side that had outclassed last year’s winners in their penultimate group game, recording their sixteenth win in 17 with the 2-0 win in Turin that secured their passage to this stage.

That was their 15th clean sheet in 20 away matches and with Barca having gone six matches in all competitions the 6/4 about Jupp Heynckes’ men to qualify looks generous.