European Football

[taz]

Italian Serie A

Matchday 26 of 38

Saturday 3 March

Palermo 0-4 Milan
Juventus 1-1 Chievo

Sunday 4 March

Parma 1-2 Napoli
Udinese 0-0 Atalanta
Siena 3-0 Cagliari
Fiorentina 2-0 Cesena
Lecce 2-2 Genoa
Roma 1-2 Lazio
Bologna 1-0 Novara
Inter 2-2 Catania

Matchday 26 Roundup

Milan (54) have opened up a 3 point lead to Juventus (51) after thrashing Palermo and Juve could only draw against Chievo. Juve can draw level with Milan if they win their game in hand against Bologna on Wednesday. Lazio (48) have moved upto 3rd after beating Roma in a fiery derby. Udinese (46) have slipped to 4th after drawing a blank against Atalanta. Napoli (43) remain 5th and have opened up a 5 point lead to Roma after scoring late on to beat Parma.

Cesena (16) remain bottom after another defeat this time to Fiorentina. Cesena are 13 points from safety but do have a game in hand. Novara (17) are 19th after losing late on against Bologna and Lecce (25) remain 18th after drawing with Genoa. Lecce are 4 points behind Parma and Siena.

[taz]

German Bundesliga

Matchday 24 of 34

Saturday 3 March

Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 Bayern Munich
Hamburg 0-4 Stuttgart
Hannover 2-2 Augsburg
Freiburg 2-1 Schalke
Kaiserslautern 0-0 Wolfsburg
Hertha Berlin 1-0 Werder Bremen
Borussia Dortmund 2-1 Mainz

Sunday 4 March

Nuremberg 1-0 Borussia Monchengladbach
Hoffenheim 1-1 Cologne

Matchday 24 Roundup

Borussia Dortmund (55) have opened up a 7 point gap to Bayern Munich (48) after beating Mainz and Bayern lost to Bayer Leverkusen. Borussia Monchengladbach (47) had the chance to leapfrog Bayern but they lost out late on against Nuremberg. Schalke (44) remain 4th after a disappointing defeat to Freiburg. Bayer Leverkusen (40) are keeping the pressure on Schalke who hold the final CL place after their victory against Bayern. Werder Bremen (36) remain 6th after losing to Hertha Berlin.

At the bottom, Kaiserslautern (19) have slipped to the foot of the table after only claiming a draw against Wolfsburg. Freiburg (21) remain 17th despite an impressive victory against Schalke and Augsburg (22) have slipped into the relegation playoff position despite claiming a very good draw at Hannover but Hertha's victory over Bremen has moved them out of the relegation places.

[taz]

French Ligue 1

Matchday 26 of 38

Saturday 3 March

Dijon 1-1 Montpellier
Lille 2-2 Auxerre
Marseille 0-1 Toulouse
Nancy 2-0 Lyon
St Etienne 0-2 Evian
Sochaux 1-1 Valenciennes
Bordeaux 1-2 Nice

Sunday 4 March

Caen 0-0 Brest
Paris St Germain 4-1 Ajaccio
Lorient 0-2 Rennes

Matchday 26 Roundup

Paris St Germain (55) have leapfrogged Montpellier to lead after beating Ajaccio and Montpellier (54) could only draw at Dijon. Lille (47) remain 3rd after throwing away a 2 goal lead against Auxerre to draw. Rennes (43) have moved upto 4th after an impressive derby victory at Lorient.

At the bottom, Sochaux (21) & Auxerre (23) remain 20th and 19th respectively despite both teams gaining draws. Ajaccio (26) have slipped into the drop zone after being humbled by Paris St Germain.

[taz]

Dutch Eredivisie

Matchday 24 of 34

Saturday 3 March

ADO Den Haag 0-0 Heerenveen
VVV Venlo 2-1 NAC Breda
RKC Waalwijk 1-0 Excelsior
AZ Alkmaar 3-1 Heracles Almelo

Sunday 4 March

Vitesse Arnhem 2-0 De Graafschap
Utrecht 0-0 NEC Nijmegen
Ajax 4-1 Roda JC
Feyenoord 1-0 Groningen
PSV Eindhoven 2-6 Twente

Matchday 24 Roundup

AZ Alkmaar (49) have moved back to the top of the table after beating Heracles. Twente (48) have leapfrogged PSV Eindhoven (48) into 2nd after their emphatic victory against PSV at Philips Stadion. Ajax (46) have moved upto 4th after coming from behind to beat Roda. Heerenveen (45), Feyenoord (44), Vitesse Arnhem (35) and Groningen (32) hold the European Competition playoff spots currently.

Excelsior (15) remain bottom after losing to RKC. De Graafschap (16) are 17th after losing to Vitesse and VVV Venlo (25) are 16th and are in the relegation playoff position with De Graafschap despite recording a victory against NAC Breda.

[taz]

Spanish Primera Division

Matchday 26 of 38

Saturday 3 March

Real Mallorca 1-1 Osasuna
Getafe 1-3 Malaga
Rayo Vallecano 4-2 Racing Santander
Barcelona 3-1 Sporting Gijon
Sevilla 1-1 Atletico Madrid

Sunday 4 March

Real Zaragoza 2-1 Villarreal
Athletic Bilbao 2-0 Real Sociedad
Granada 0-1 Valencia
Real Madrid 5-0 Espanyol

Monday 5 March

Levante 3-1 Real Betis

Matchday 26 Roundup

Real Madrid (67) still lead Barcelona (57) by 10 points after their respective victories. Valencia (43) remain 3rd after their slender victory at Granada. Levante (38) remain 4th after an impressive victory against Real Betis. Athletic Bilbao (37) & Malaga (37) are 5th and 6th respectively after both teams recorded victories.

Real Zaragoza (18) remain bottom despite coming from behind to beat Villarreal. Zaragoza are 9 points from safety. Sporting Gijon (21) & Racing Santander (24) remain in the drop zone after suffering defeats. Racing are 3 points behind Villarreal.

[taz]

Russian Premier Liga

Matchday 33 of 44

Saturday 3 March

Terek Grozny 1-0 Tom Tomsk
Volga Nizhny Novgorod 1-0 Spartak Nalchik
CSKA Moscow 2-2 Zenit St Petersburg
Lokomotiv Moscow 2-0 Kuban Krasnodar

Monday 5 March

Krasnodar 1-0 Rostov
Dinamo Moscow 0-1 Anzhi Makhachkala
Rubin Kazan 1-1 Spartak Moscow

Tuesday 6 March

Amkar Perm 2-1 Krylya Sovetov Samara

[taz]

German Bundesliga

Matchday 25 of 34

Friday 9 March

Stuttgart 0-0 Kaiserslautern

Saturday 10 March

Bayern Munich 7-1 Hoffenheim
Mainz 2-1 Nuremberg
Cologne 1-0 Hertha Berlin
Wolfsburg 3-2 Bayer Leverkusen
Borussia Monchengladbach 0-0 Freiburg
Augsburg 0-0 Borussia Dortmund

Sunday 11 March

Werder Bremen 3-0 Hannover
Schalke 3-1 Hamburg

Matchday 25 Roundup

Borussia Dortmund's (56) lead at the top has been cut to 5 points after they could only draw with Augsburg and 2nd placed Bayern Munich (51) hammered Hoffenheim. Borussia Monchengladbach (48) remain 3rd despite only claiming a point against Freiburg. Schalke (47) have strengthened their position on 4th with a convincing victory against Hamburg. Bayer Leverkusen (40) remain 5th after losing to Wolfsburg and have fallen behind in their race for 4th. Werder Bremen (39) remain 6th after hammering Hannover.

Kaiserslautern (20) and Freiburg (22) remain in the drop zone despite both teams claiming respective draws. Hertha Berlin (23) have slipped into the relegation playoff position after losing an ill tempered game against Cologne. Augsburg (23) have moved out of the playoff position after claiming a great point at home against Dortmund.

[taz]

Dutch Eredivisie

Matchday 25 of 34

Friday 9 March

Roda JC 3-1 VVV Venlo

Saturday 10 March

Groningen 1-3 Vitesse Arnhem
Heracles Almelo 0-2 ADO Den Haag
Heerenveen 4-2 Excelsior

Sunday 11 March

NAC Breda 3-1 PSV Eindhoven
NEC Nijmegen 3-1 Twente
Ajax 3-0 RKC Waalwijk
Feyenoord 1-1 Utrecht
De Graafschap 0-2 AZ Alkmaar

Matchday 25 Roundup

AZ Alkmaar (52) have opened up a 3 point gap to Ajax (49) after both teams posted victories. Twente (48) have slipped to 3rd after a shock defeat at NEC. 4th placed PSV's (48) poor form continues while Heerenveen (48) remain 5th after victory but have put the pressure on the teams above them. Feyenoord (45), Vitesse Arnhem (38) & Roda (34) occupy the European playoff positions.

Excelsior (15) remain bottom after another defeat. De Graafschap (16) and VVV Venlo (25) occupy the relegation playoff spots after respective defeats.

[taz]

Italian Serie A

Matchday 27 of 38

Friday 9 March

Napoli 6-3 Cagliari
Chievo 0-2 Inter

Saturday 10 March

Palermo 0-1 Roma

Sunday 11 March

Catania 1-0 Fiorentina
Genoa 0-0 Juventus
Milan 2-0 Lecce
Atalanta 1-1 Parma
Cesena 0-2 Siena
Lazio 1-3 Bologna
Novara 1-0 Udinese

Matchday 27 Roundup

Milan (57) have opened up a 4 point gap to undefeated Juventus (53). Milan were able to beat relegation threatened Lecce and Juventus could only draw against Genoa to record their 5th draw in 6 games. Lazio (48) had the opportunity to close the gap on Juve but were comprehensively beaten by Bologna. Napoli (46) have moved upto 4th after beating Cagliari in a high scoring affair and Udinese (46) have slipped to 5th after losing to Novara.

The bottom 3 remains the same. Cesena (17) remain bottom after defeat against Siena. Novara (20) remain 19th despite an impressive victory against Udinese and lecce (25) are 18th after losing to defending champions Milan and are 6 points behind Cagliari and Parma.

[taz]

French Ligue 1

Matchday 27 of 38

Friday 9 March

Ajaccio 1-0 Marseille

Saturday 10 March

Brest 0-2 Bordeaux
Evian 2-3 Sochaux
Nice 1-1 Nancy
Toulouse 1-1 Lorient
Valenciennes 1-2 St Etienne
Lyon 2-1 Lille

Sunday 11 March

Rennes 1-1 Auxerre
Dijon 1-2 Paris St Germain
Montpellier 3-0 Caen

Matchday 27 Roundup

The Ligue 1 title race looks to be a two horse race as PSG (58) & Montpellier (57) both recorded victories. Defending champions Lille (47) remain 3rd after losing to Lyon which has all but ended their hopes of retaining the title. St Etienne (46) remain 4th after a come from behind victory against Valenciennes.

At the bottom, Sochaux (24) remain bottom but are now 3 points from safety after defeating Evian. Auxerre (24) remain 19th after an impressive draw at Rennes. Dijon (27) have slipped into the drop zone by virtue of goal difference after Nice and Nancy drew in their respective match and Dijon lost to league leaders PSG.

[taz]

Spanish Primera Division

Matchday 27 of 38

Saturday 10 March

Real Sociedad 3-0 Real Zaragoza
Malaga 1-0 Levante
Sporting Gijon 1-0 Sevilla
Real Betis 2-3 Real Madrid

Sunday 11 March

Atletico Madrid 2-0 Granada
Espanyol 5-1 Rayo Vallecano
Valencia 2-2 Real Mallorca
Racing Santander 0-2 Barcelona
Osasuna 2-1 Athletic Bilbao

Monday 12 March

Villarreal 1-2 Getafe

Matchday 27 Roundup

Real Madrid (70) remain 10 points clear of Barcelona (60) after both teams recorded victories. Valencia (44) remain 3rd but after throwing away a two goal lead against Mallorca, teams behind them are catching up. Malaga (40) have moved upto 4th after beating 5th placed Levante (38). Osasuna (38) have moved upto 6th after beating 7th placed Athletic Bilbao.

The bottom 3 remains the same. Real Zaragoza (18) remain bottom and 9 points from safety after being humbled by Real Sociedad. Racing Santander and Sporting Gijon (both 24) remain in the drop zone despite Sporting defeating Sevilla and are 3 points behind Villarreal.

[taz]

Russian Premier Liga

Matchday 34 of 44

Friday 9 March

CSKA Moscow 1-1 Dinamo Moscow

Saturday 10 March

Krasnodar 1-3 Terek Grozny

Sunday 11 March

Rubin Kazan 0-0 Lokomotiv Moscow
Rostov 1-0 Krylya Sovetov
Zenit St Petersburg 1-1 Kuban Krasnodar

Monday 12 March

Tom Tomsk 1-0 Volga Nizhny Novgorod
Spartak Nalchik 1-2 Amkar Perm
Anzhi Makhachkala 0-0 Spartak Moscow

[taz]

Dutch Eredivisie

Matchday 26 of 34

Friday 16 March

Vitesse Arnhem 2-0 Heracles Almelo

Saturday 17 March

RKC Waalwijk 1-0 De Graafschap
Excelsior 2-1 Roda
VVV Venlo 0-2 NEC Nijmegen

Sunday 18 March

ADO Den Haag 0-2 Ajax
PSV Eindhoven 5-1 Heerenveen
Twente 0-2 Feyenoord
Utrecht 1-1 Groningen
AZ Alkmaar 0-0 NAC Breda

Matchday 26 Roundup

AZ Alkmaar (53) remain top despite a disappointing draw against NAC. Ajax (52) have moved upto 2nd after beating ADO. PSV Eindhoven (51) have moved upto 3rd after thrashing Heerenveen in Philip Cocu's Eredivisie managerial debut. Twente (48) have slipped to 4th after losing at home to 5th placed Feyenoord (48). Heerenveen (48), Vitesse Arnhem (41) & RKC Waalwijk (34) occupy the remaining European playoff spots.

At the bottom, De Graafschap (16) have slipped to the foot of the table after losing to RKC and Excelsior (18) have moved up from the bottom to move into the relegation playoff position alongside VVV Venlo (25).

[taz]

German Bundesliga

Matchday 26 of 34

Friday 16 March

Hoffenheim 1-2 Stuttgart

Saturday 17 March

Borussia Dortmund 1-0 Werder Bremen
Bayer Leverkusen 1-2 Borussia Monchengladbach
Hamburg 1-3 Freiburg
Nuremberg 1-3 Wolfsburg
Augsburg 2-1 Mainz
Hertha Berlin 0-6 Bayern Munich

Sunday 18 March

Kaiserslautern 1-4 Schalke
Hannover 4-1 Cologne

Matchday 26 Roundup

Borussia Dortmund (59), Bayern Munich (54), Borussia Monchengladbach (51) & Schalke (50), the top 4, all recorded victories. Bayer Leverkusen (40) & Werder Bremen (39) both remain in the Europa League positions despite losing to Gladbach and Dortmund respectively.

At the bottom, Kaiserslautern (20) remain bottom after being thrashed by Schalke. Hertha Berlin (23) have slipped into the relegation zone after being hammered by Bayern Munich. Freiburg (25) have moved upto the relegation playoff position after beating Hamburg and are a point behind Augsburg.

[taz]

French Ligue 1

Matchday 28 of 38

Saturday 17 March

Auxerre 0-2 Evian
Bordeaux 1-1 Ajaccio
Caen 2-2 Paris St Germain
Lorient 2-1 Brest
Marseille 1-2 Dijon
Nancy 1-0 Montpellier
St Etienne 0-1 Lyon

Sunday 18 March

Rennes 0-1 Toulouse
Sochaux 2-0 Nice
Lille 4-0 Valenciennes

Matchday 28 Roundup

Paris St Germain (59) have opened up a 2 point gap to Montpellier (57) after the former's last gasp draw and Montpellier's ill tempered defeat against Nancy. Lille (50) remain 3rd after a dominating victory against Valenciennes. Toulouse (47) have moved upto 4th after beating Rennes and St Etienne lost to Lyon.

Auxerre (24) have slipped to the bottom after defeat to Evian which resulted in Laurent Fournier losing his job. Sochaux (27) remain in the relegation zone despite beating Nice (27) who have slipped into the relegation as a result of the defeat which puts them 2 points behind Caen.

[RomaShield27]

[taz]

Spanish Primera Division

Matchday 28 of 38

Saturday 17 March

Granada 2-1 Sporting Gijon
Real Zaragoza 1-1 Osasuna
Getafe 1-0 Real Sociedad
Sevilla 0-2 Barcelona
Rayo Vallecano 3-0 Real Betis

Sunday 18 March

Levante 1-0 Villarreal
Real Mallorca 2-1 Atletico Madrid
Athletic Bilbao 0-3 Valencia
Real Madrid 1-1 Malaga

Monday 19 March

Espanyol 3-1 Racing Santander

Matchday 28 Roundup

Real Madrid's (71) lead at the top has been cut to 8 points by Barcelona (63) after the former conceded late on against Malaga to only claim a point and the latter comfortably beat Sevilla. Valencia (47) are sitting comfortable in 3rd after an emphati victory at Athletic. Levante (41) have moved upto 4th after a last gasp victory against Villarreal and Malaga (41) have slipped to 5th despite claiming a creditable draw at the Bernabeu. Espanyol (39) have moved upto 6th after beating Racing and Athletic lost to Valencia.

At the bottom, the bottom 3 remains the same after none recorded victories. Real Zaragoza (19) remain bottom 8 points from safety despite claiming a draw against Osasuna. Racing and Sporting (both 24) occupy the other relegation spots after respective defeats and are 3 points behind Villarreal.

[taz]

Italian Serie A

Matchday 28 of 38

Saturday 17 March

Parma 0-2 Milan
Fiorentina 0-5 Juventus

Sunday 18 March

Cagliari 3-0 Cesena
Inter 0-0 Atalanta
Bologna 2-2 Chievo
Catania 1-0 Lazio
Siena 0-2 Novara
Lecce 1-1 Palermo
Napoli 2-2 Udinese

Monday 19 March

Roma 1-0 Genoa

Matchday 28 Roundup

Milan (60) maintain a 4 point lead over Juventus (56) after both teams posted away victories on Saturday. Lazio (48) remain 3rd despite losing to Catania. Napoli & Udinese (both 47) are keeping the pressure on Lazio after their respective draw.

At the bottom, it remains the same. Cesena (17) remain rooted to the bottom after another defeat and are 14 points from safety. 19th placed Novara (23) recorded an important victory at Siena. Lecce (26) remain 18th after a draw with Palermo and are 5 points behind Parma.

[taz]

Russian Premier Liga

Matchday 35 of 44

Friday 16 March

Dinamo Moscow 1-5 Zenit St Petersburg

Saturday 17 March

Volga Nizhny Novgorod 1-2 Krasnodar
Terek Grozny 1-0 Rostov

Sunday 18 March

Amkar Perm 0-0 Tom Tomsk
Kuban Krasnodar 1-0 Rubin Kazan
Lokomotiv Moscow 1-0 Anzhi Makhachkala
Krylya Sovetov 1-0 Spartak Nalchik

Monday 19 March

Spartak Moscow 1-2 CSKA Moscow

[RomaShield27]

Horncastle: Dortmund take nothing for granted in the final chapter of the Bundesliga season
/ Posted by James Horncastle under Bundesliga on Mar 21, 2012

Shinji Kagawa dashed over to the dugout, high-fived his coach Jürgen Klopp and a couple of teammates before searching out Felipe Santana in particular. It was their special day after all. Before Saturday’s game against Werder Bremen, the Borussia Dortmund players had gathered around the pair and sang ‘Happy Birthday’ in the dressing room. After eight minutes, Kagawa had opened the scoring. It was the icing on the cake and he wanted to blow the candles out with Santana.

“I got myself a present today,” he said. “It’s his birthday as well and I’m happy that I was able to dedicate my goal to him.”

The afternoon had started on a somber note. A minute’s silence was held in memory of ‘Timo’ Konietzka, who died in Switzerland last week. He had been suffering from cancer and, according to a death notice he had published in the newspaper Blick, took his own life with the help of the Swiss assisted suicide group Exit.

“Konietzka, forever a German champion,” read a banner in the stands. A prolific striker for Dortmund in the late `50s and early `60s, he is most remembered, quite coincidentally, for finding the net against Werder on August 24, 1963. It was an historic goal because it was also the first to ever be scored in the newly formed Bundesliga.

Mournful faces in the crowd quickly found something to smile about again once Kagawa had given his side the lead. It was a wonderful goal on the counter attack, so typical of what everyone has come to expect from Dortmund under Klopp.
Goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller plucked a Werder corner out of the air and promptly threw it to Robert Lewandowski. Another fast break was on. The ball was shifted out wide on the left to Kevin Großkreutz. He spotted Ilkay Gündogan at the far post. A cross was delivered, which was then met with a selfless volley cushioned across goal for Kagawa to nod in at point-blank range.
The row of Japanese tourists seen in the stands each wearing Dortmund replica shirts which matched the yellow and black colours of the neck straps holding their cameras, could leave satisfied. They had got what they came to see. Kagawa later had a shot pushed onto the post while captain Sebastian Kehl’s towering header struck the underside of the bar. It bounced on the line before being punched to safety.

At their best, there’s a waspish quality about Dortmund. They swarm forward, buzzing from all sides before descending on their opponents as though they are an ice cream melting on the pavement. No wonder Werder coach Thomas Schaaf was pictured on the sidelines swatting at the air in vain. As it happened, one sting was enough for Dortmund to kill off the visitors.

They won 1-0. It should have been more. But still, the league leaders maintained their five-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga. While Bayern grabbed the headlines after their astonishing feat of scoring 20 goals in the space of a week, Dortmund, like a poker player who knows he holds all the cards, raised the stakes accordingly by extending their run to 20 matches unbeaten, a new club record.

Dortmund will, in all likelihood, retain the title for the first time since 1996 this season, not that anyone at the club has been prepared to say so throughout the campaign. There’s a reluctance to jinx it, a residual humility that comes from the knowledge that, even though they’re the holders and will be stronger for it in the run-in, it was only seven years ago last week that an emergency meeting was called to save the club from bankruptcy.

“Of course we want to stay up there and win as many games as possible,” their CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke told Bild. “But I would be happy with second place.” Just who, though, is he trying to kid? What’s the harm in revealing an aspiration to win it?

Tired of the charade, captain Kehl broke cover and went rogue on ‘Aki’ Watzke. He said what everyone is thinking. “We are dominant table-toppers and there are eight games to go. I’d sound ridiculous if I said that we had no ambitions to win the title.”
Dortmund’s destiny lies in their own hands. The season is likely to come down to 10 days in mid-April, for it’s then that they host free-scoring Bayern in an eagerly anticipated top of the table clash. Fans were already pitching their tents to be first in the line to buy tickets last Sunday afternoon. By Monday morning it was sold out. After that there’s a short drive to Schalke for the Revierderby, where Klaas-Jan Huntelaar’s remarkable record of 38 goals in 37 games in all competitions this season makes the former Ajax, Real Madrid and AC Milan striker the most prolific marksman on Europe’s shores behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Then there’s the visit of this campaign’s revelation, Lucien Favre’s Borussia Mönchengladbach to prepare for at the Westfalenstadion.

All in all, it promises to be a captivating final chapter to the season in the Bundesliga. If Dortmund were to throw away their advantage, a plot twist usually reserved for horror stories about Bayer Leverkusen published in 2000 and 2002, then it would come as a shock.

Little has got in their way. They have coped quite comfortably since mid-December without the injured Mario Götze and his return for the last five or six games of the season might provide them with a boost.

Rumblings off the pitch about players’ contracts have made a few headlines. Kagawa’s existing deal expires in 2013 and while that should perhaps be the focus of Dortmund’s attention, it’s the entourage of Lewandowski, the team’s top scorer, which has been causing a stir, as they have been agitating to get their client a significantly better salary than the one he is currently on until 2014. Still, these are only ripples on Lake Placid. Last night, Dortmund secured their passage to the final of the DFB Cup, a trophy they haven’t lifted since 1989.

They were taken to extra-time by second division leaders Greuther Fürth. As had happened against Werder at the weekend, they created a lot but couldn’t put them away, a criticism that has frequently been made of Dortmund in recent weeks.
Kagawa headed over from three yards and also saw a shot palmed around the post. Lewandowski wasted another opening while Großkreutz forced a terrific save from Fürth `keeper Max Grün, who ended up in a heap in his own net after pushing away another header.

With the game still goalless, penalties looked to be on the cards. Klopp had claimed before the tie that if it came to a shootout, he’d leave his place on the bench and watch from the stands out of superstition. He had been sent there earlier in the competition during a match against Fortuna Düsseldorf, and thought that it might be lucky, as on that occasion they had gone through after triumphing 5-4 from the spot.

Before Klopp could take his position, however, Fürth coach Mike Büskens made a decision that would have an influential bearing on the outcome of the game. He replaced Grün with Jasmin Fejzic, a reserve `keeper with a reputation for saving penalties.

It’s a pity then that he never got the chance to face any. With 120 minutes on the clock, Gündogan angled a toe-poked shot from the left-hand edge of the area. It ricocheted off the post, struck Fejzic on the back, Pepe Reina-style, and crossed the line. Cue a euphoric dash to the corner flag where, pursued by his teammates, Gündogan ended up at the bottom of a Dortmund pile-on.

Celebrations were marred when Großkreutz headed directly for Fürth striker Gerald Asamoah, a former player with rivals Schalke, to rub it in a bit. Dortmund born and bred, he couldn’t resist and might have overstepped the mark. While separating the players, Fürth defender Mergim Mavraj claimed to Bild that he overheard a racial slur from Großkreutz, a serious allegation that the Dortmund player strongly denies.

It was an unsavory incident that has taken some of the shine off Dortmund’s victory. It remains to be seen what, if any, course of action will be taken as, when asked for a comment, Asamoah simply said that Großkreutz wasn’t worth it. In the meantime, Bayern and Gladbach will duke it out tonight to decide who will contest the final with Dortmund in Berlin on May 12. Can either of them stop Klopp and his players doing the double?