Champions League Final Facts And Figures Champions League final facts and figures Champions League final facts and figures By Vision Reporter A A A Fill in your Name and Email Address to receive a Free Newsletter SATURDAY''S final will be the 58th since the competition began in the 1955-56 season, with Real Madrid winning the first five finals SATURDAY'S final will be the 58th since the competition began in the 1955-56 season, with Real Madrid winning the first five finals. - Bayern Munich are third in the all-time list of finalists having appeared in nine previous finals, winning four times, in 1974, 1975, 1976 and 2001, and losing five times, in 1982, 1987, 1999, 2010 and last season, when they lost to Chelsea on penalties in Munich. - Real Madrid have appeared in a record 12 finals since 1956, followed by AC Milan on 11.

Saturday will be Munich's fifth in the Champions League era, only one behind Milan, whose six appearances were between 1993 and 2007. - Borussia Dortmund are appearing in their second Champions League final after winning on their only other appearance in 1997, when they defeated Juventus 3-1 in Munich. - Ottmar Hitzfeld is one of only three men to win the European Cup with two different clubs - leading Borussia Dortmund to their 1997 success and winning it with Bayern Munich in 2001. - The only others to win it with two clubs are Ernst Happel, with Feyenoord in 1970 and SV Hamburg in 1983, and Jose Mourinho with Porto in 2004 and Inter Milan in 2010. - Franz Beckenbauer became the first player to captain three successive European Cup-winning teams, with Bayern in 1974, 1975 and 1976. Although Real won five successive cups between 1956 and 1960, they had three different captains.

- Since the Champions League format was introduced in 1992-93, no side has won a greater percentage of their games to lift the trophy than Borussia Dortmund in 1997. - They won nine of the 11 matches they played - 81.8 per cent. In contrast, when Manchester United won the competition in 1999 their winning percentage was a record low, 45.5 per cent. - The following season, as defending champions, Borussia beat Bayern 1-0 on aggregate in the quarter-finals. - The lowest attendance for any finals match was for the replayed final in 1974, when Bayern beat Atletico Madrid 4-0 at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels on Friday, May 17. Only 23,325 watched the match. A crowd of 48,772 watched the original 1-1 draw two days previously.

- Georg Schwarzenbeck scored Bayern's equaliser in the last minute of extra time to force that 1-1 draw, but Bayern experienced heartbreak in the last seconds of time added on for injury in the 1999 final, when Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer scored to give Manchester United a 2-1 victory in Barcelona - the most dramatic end to any European final. - This will be the fourth time two clubs from the same country have played each other in the final following Real Madrid v Valenica in 2000, AC Milan v Juventus in 2003 and Manchester United v Chelsea in 2008. Those matches ended in victories for Real, Milan and United, with Milan and United winning on penalties. - Bayern would become the first club to lift the European Cup twice on penalties if they were to succeed in a shootout. They beat Valencia 5-4 on penalties in 2001 after a 1-1 draw. They would also become the first club to feature in three shootouts in the final if the match ends in a draw, following last season's loss.

- Paulo Sousa became one of only two players to win the European Cup with two different clubs in successive seasons when Borussia Dortmund lifted the trophy in 1997. The previous season he was in the winning Juventus team. Marcel Desailly (Olympique Marseille 1993, AC Milan 1994) is the only other player to achieve the feat. - Since Bayern won promotion to the Bundesliga in 1965, the two clubs have met 95 times in all senior comptitions, with Bayern winning 41 times, Borussia 25 with 29 matches drawn. - The record score between the sides was Bayern's 11-1 win over Borussia in the Bundesliga in November 1971, their record victory in the Bundesliga. - They have met four times this season, with Bayern beating Borussia 2-1 in the season-opening German Super Cup in August and also gaining revenge for their 5-2 defeat in last season's German Cup final with a 1-0 win in the German Cup in February. Their two league matches finished 1-1.

- Bayern's stunning 7-0 aggregate victory over Barcelona was a record winning margin in the semi-finals in the competition since it began in 1955-56. They also hold the record aggregate victory in the knockout rounds in the Champions League era, beating Sporting Lisbon 12-1 on aggregate in a first knockout round match in 2008-09.

Champions League final facts and figures TAGS: Press kits - UEFA Champions League - Media – UEFA.org UEFA Champions League UEFA Champions League: Manchester City FC - Real Madrid CF Match press kits UEFA Champions League - 2015/16 SeasonMatch press kits Manchester City FC City of Manchester Stadium - ManchesterTuesday 26 April 2016 20.45CET (19.45 local time) Semi-finals, First leg Real Madrid CF UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE OFFICIAL SPONSORS /mediaservices/presskits/uefachampionsleague/season=2016/round=2000637/day=11/session=1/match=2015785/library/_sidebar.html Contents Previous meetings Only this chapter Head to Head Agüero 73 (P); Benzema 10 18/09/2012 Marcelo 76, Benzema 87, Ronaldo 90; Džeko 68, Kolarov 85 Home Manchester City FC - Record versus clubs from opponents' country UEFA Champions League Trémoulinas 25; Sterling 8, Fernandinho

 11, Bony 36 21/10/2015 Rami 36 (og), De Bruyne 90+1; Konoplyanka 30 UEFA Champions League Agüero 69; Suárez 16, 30 UEFA Champions League Messi 67, Dani Alves 90+1; Kompany 89 18/02/2014 Messi 54 (P), Dani Alves 90 UEFA Champions League Touré 30, 71, Balotelli 45+3 (P) 18/10/2011 Marchena 43 (og), Agüero 90+3; Cani 4 UEFA Cup Jonathan Pereira 20, Óscar Serrano 30, Valera 54; Caicedo 90+2 UEFA Cup Valdez 71, Quino 78; Marsh 89 13/09/1972 Lee 7, Marsh 61; Valdez 42, Adorno 55 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Manchester City FC

 - Athletic Club 3-0 Oakes 58, Bell 66, Bowyer 85 17/09/1969 Athletic Club - Manchester City FC 3-3 Argoitia 9, Clemente 12, Uriarte 57; Young 42, Booth 68, Echeberría 86 (og) Real Madrid CF - Record versus clubs from opponents' country UEFA Champions League Ronaldo 23, Benzema 30, 41 UEFA Champions League Ramos 48 (og); Modrić 66, Ronaldo 69 13/02/2013 Adebayor 4, 57, Di María 72, Ronaldo 87 UEFA Champions League Torres 16, Gerrard 28 (P), 47, Dossena 88 25/02/2009 Van Nistelrooy 43, Iván Helguera 52 (og), Beckham 71, 85; Ronaldo 12, 50, 59 08/04/2003 Luís

 Figo 12, Raúl González 28, 49; Van Nistelrooy 52 UEFA Champions League Raúl González 7, 60, Luís Figo 41; Smith 6, Viduka 54 22/11/2000 Hierro 66, Raúl González 68 UEFA Champions League Beckham 64, Scholes 88 (P); Keane 21 (og), Raúl González 50, 52 04/04/2000 Real Madrid CF - Chelsea FC 0-1 Martínez 3, 51, Santillana 55, 99 ET, Pirri 83 (P); George 62 22/10/1975 George 9, 15 (P), 78 (P), Nish 42; Pirri 25 UEFA Cup Real Madrid CF - Chelsea FC 1-2 ( Rep ) Fleitas 75; Dempsey 31, Osgood 39 19/05/19

71 Chelsea FC - Real Madrid CF 1-1 Pirri 31, Gento 41, Amancio Amaro 45; Zoco 44 (og), Sadler 73, Foulkes 80 24/04/1968 Taylor 52, Charlton 85; Kopa 25, Rial 33 11/04/1957 Rial 61, Di Stéfano 73, Mateos 83; Taylor 82 Home Last updated 18/04/2016 11:53CET Match background Only this chapter The contrast in European Cup semi-final experience could scarcely be more extreme as Manchester City FC host Real Madrid CF in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League last-four tie.

• While this is a first semi-final in the competition for City, Madrid are in the last four for a record 27th time – they have won 13 and lost 13 of their previous semi-finals. • Indeed, this is only City's third European semi-final across UEFA's club competitions, and their first since 1971. They beat FC Schalke 04 5-2 on aggregate in the 1969/70 European Cup Winners' Cup semi-finals and lost 2-0 to Chelsea FC over two legs at the same stage of the same competition the following season. • Madrid, meanwhile, are in their 32nd European semi-final; their record is W17 L14. Although they are in a sixth successive UEFA Champions League semi-final, they have won only once in that sequence – against FC Bayern München in 2013/14, when they went on to win a tenth title. Previous meetings • The clubs' only competitive fixtures came in the 2012/13 group stage, when Madrid twice came from behind to win 3-2 in Spain on matchday one .

City led twice courtesy of Edin Džeko (68) and Aleksandar Kolarov (85) but Madrid responded through Marcelo (76) and Karim Benzema (87) before Cristiano Ronaldo snatched a 90th-minute victory. • The teams at the Santiago Bernabéu on 18 September 2012 were: Real Madrid: Casillas; Arbeloa, Pepe, Varane, Marcelo; Khedira (Modrić 73), Xabi Alonso; Di María, Essien (Özil 65), Ronaldo; Higuaín (Benzema 73). Manchester City: Hart; Maicon (Zabaleta 74), Kompany, Nastasić, Clichy; Javi García; Silva (Džeko 63), Y Touré, Barry, Nasri (Kolarov 37); Tévez. Manchester City v Real Madrid: 2012/13 group stage • It was 1-1 in Manchester , Sergio Agüero's penalty cancelling out Benzema's tenth-minute strike.

Madrid ended with ten men as Álvaro Arbeloa collected a second yellow card in fouling Agüero to concede that spot kick. • The sides at the City of Manchester Stadium on 21 November 2012 were: Manchester City: Hart; Zabaleta, Kompany, Nastasić; Maicon, Y Touré, Silva, Nasri (Tévez 60), Kolarov (Javi García 46); Agüero (Milner 88), Džeko. Real Madrid: Casillas; Arbeloa, Ramos, Pepe, Coentrão; Khedira, Xabi Alonso; Di María (Albiol 87), Modrić (Callejón 68), Ronaldo; Benzema (Varane 75). • Those four points helped José Mourinho's Madrid finish second in Group D, behind Borussia Dortmund; City, then managed by Roberto Mancini, ended bottom with three points having not won a game.

Match background Manchester City • City's last two UEFA Champions League campaigns ended in round of 16 defeat by Barcelona, in 2013/14 and 2014/15 . • The 3-1 aggregate win against Dynamo Kyiv in this season's round of 16 – 3-1 away , 0-0 home – was City's first European Cup knockout victory. Aside from those Barcelona defeats, their only previous tie was a 2-1 aggregate loss to Fenerbahçe SK in the 1968/69 first round. • City claimed their second knockout win with a 1-0 home defeat of Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-final second leg, completing a 3-2 aggregate success. Watch six great Manchester City goals • Manuel Pellegrini's side have won three and drawn one of their five home UEFA Champions League games this season, although they did suffer a 2-1 loss to Juventus on matchday one. • The Manchester club have already met Spanish opposition in this season's competition, beating Sevilla FC 2-1 at home and 3-1 away in the group stage.

• City's home record against Spanish sides is W3 D2 L2, both defeats coming against Barcelona. Overall it is W5 D3 L7. • Their record in two-legged ties with Spanish sides is W1 L3. • City may have never been in the semi-finals before, but Pellegrini's Villarreal CF team got this far in 2005/06, losing 1-0 to Arsenal FC over two legs. Real Madrid • While Madrid are in the last four for the sixth season running, they have lost five of their last six UEFA Champions League semi-finals. Of those ties, they suffered four defeats and picked up one draw away from home, the sole exception the 4-0 victory at FC Bayern München in the 2013/14 second leg. • Madrid lost their last away game in the UEFA Champions League, going down 2-0 at VfL Wolfsburg in the quarter-final first leg – they won the return 3-0 to progress. They had previously collected three wins and a draw away from home this campaign.

• The 2-1 loss at Juventus in last season's semi-final first leg is the other of only two defeats in Madrid's last 12 European away games, with eight victories in that time. • Madrid have won on their last three visits to England, against Tottenham Hotspur FC ( 1-0, 2010/11 ), Manchester United FC ( 2-1, 2012/13 ) and Liverpool FC ( 3-0, 2014/15 ). Highlights: Ronaldo joins quarter-final hat-trick club • The Merengues are unbeaten in their last eight games against English clubs (W6 D2) since a 4-0 defeat at Liverpool in the 2008/09 round of 16 second leg – their heaviest UEFA Champions League loss. • Madrid's record in two-legged ties against English opponents is W7 L4. • The Spanish side's record in England is W6 D3 L5; overall it is W13 D9 L10.

• Madrid's overall European Cup semi-final record is W13 L13: 2-3 v Juventus, 2014/15 (1-2 a, 1-1 h) 5-0 v FC Bayern München, 2013/14 (1-0 h, 4-0 a) 3-4 v Borussia Dortmund, 2012/13 (1-4 a, 2-0 h) 3-3 v FC Bayern München, 1-3 on penalties, 2011/12 (1-2 a, 2-1 h) 1-3 v FC Barcelona, 2010/11 (0-2 h, 1-1 a) 3-4 v Juventus, 2002/03 (2-1 h, 1-3 a) 3-1 v FC Barcelona, 2001/02 (2-0 a, 1-1 h) 1-3 v FC Bayern München, 2000/01 (0-1 h, 1-2 a) 3-2 v FC

 Bayern München, 1999/2000 (2-0 h, 1-2 a) 2-0 v Borussia Dortmund, 1997/98 (2-0 h, 0-0 a) 1-6 v AC Milan, 1988/89 (1-1 h, 0-5 a) 1-1 v PSV Eindhoven, lost on away goals, 1987/88 (1-1 h, 0-0 a) 2-4 v FC Bayern München, 1986/87 (1-4 a, 1-0 h) 2-1 v FC Internazionale Milano, 1980/81 (2-0 h, 0-1 a) 3-5 v Hamburger SV, 1979/80 (2-0 h, 1-5 a) 1-3 v FC Bayern München, 1975/76 (1-1 h, 0-2 a) 1-3 v AFC Ajax, 1972/73 (1-2 a

, 0-1 h) 3-4 v Manchester United FC, 1967/68 (0-1 a, 3-3 h) 2-1 v FC Internazionale Milano, 1965/66 (1-0 h, 1-1 a) 8-1 v FC Zürich, 1963/64 (2-1 a, 6-0 h) 6-0 v R.

Standard de Liège, 1961/62 (4-0 h, 2-0 a) 6-2 v FC Barcelona, 1959/60 (3-1 h, 3-1 a) 2-1 (replay) v Club Atlético de Madrid, 1958/59 (2-1 h, 0-1 a, 2-1 replay) 4-2 v Vasas SC, 1957/58 (4-0 h, 0-2 a) 5-3 v Manchester United FC, 1956/57 (3-1 h, 2-2 a) 5-4 v AC Milan, 1955/56 (4-2 h, 1-2 a) Coach and player links • City manager Pellegrini was in charge of Madrid in 2009/10, being replaced by Mourinho despite achieving a then club record 96 points but finishing second in the Liga to Barcelona.

His side were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League in the round of 16 by Olympique Lyonnais and were eliminated from the Copa del Rey by third-tier Alcorcón. • Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Marcelo, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Álvaro Arbeloa are the only surviving squad members of Pellegrini's Madrid reign. • Pellegrini was in charge of Villarreal from 2004 to 2009 – his team finishing runners-up to Madrid in the Liga in 2007/08 – and Málaga CF from 2010 to 2013. His record against Madrid was W3 D5 L10; those losses included a 5-0 home defeat with Villarreal in September 2007 and 7-0 (March 2011) and 6-2 (May 2013) reverses at the Bernabéu with Málaga. • Ronaldo played for City's local rivals Manchester United between 2003 and 2009, scoring 84 goals in 196 Premier League games.

He won league titles in 2007, 2008 and 2009 and scored in the 2008 UEFA Champions League final, when Sir Alex Ferguson's side beat Chelsea on penalties in Moscow . Ronaldo was also in the side beaten by Barcelona 12 months later, his final United appearance before moving to Madrid. • Ronaldo's record against City with United was W7 D1 L3. He scored four goals – all in United wins, including the only one in a 1-0 success at the City of Manchester Stadium in May 2007, but was sent off twice in away games: City's 4-1 win in March 2004 and a 1-0 United triumph in November 2008. • Sergio Agüero failed to beat Real Madrid in five years at Atlético Madrid between 2006 and 2011, when he departed for City. His record was D3 L8, scoring three goals – all in Atlético defeats.

©AFP/Getty Images Gareth Bale celebrates his goal against City in 2013 • Gareth Bale scored in Tottenham Hotspur FC's 3-1 win against City in April 2013 and a 3-2 loss in January 2012. • Luka Modrić and Bale were in the Tottenham side that won 1-0 at City in May 2010 to earn UEFA Champions League qualification at their opponents' expense. • Arbeloa's own goal gave City a 1-1 draw at Liverpool in February 2009.

• International team-mates: Head coach Only this chapter Manchester City FC: Manuel Pellegrini Date of birth: 16 September 1953 Nationality: Chilean Playing career: CF Universidad de Chile Coaching career: CF Universidad de Chile, CD Palestino (three times), Chile Under-20, CD O'Higgins, CD Universidad Católica, LDU de Quito, CA San Lorenzo de Almagro, CA River Plate, Villarreal CF, Real Madrid CF, Málaga CF, Manchester City FC • The former centre-back began his coaching career in 1988 with the sole club of his playing days, Universidad de Chile, before spending the next 16 years working with sides in Chile, Ecuador and Argentina. • Took over at Villarreal in 2004, guiding them to third place in the Liga in his debut season and securing a place in the UEFA Champions League for the first time. His side also reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup. • The following campaign, Villarreal defied expectations by reaching the UEFA Champions League semi-finals, losing 1-0 on aggregate to Arsenal FC.

Guided team to second place in the 2007/08 Liga, a club record, and the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals the following season, again knocked out by Arsenal. • Joined Real Madrid on 2 June 2009, the Merengues winning a then club record 96 points in the Liga but still finishing second behind FC Barcelona, prompting Pellegrini's dismissal in May 2010. That November he succeeded Jesualdo Ferreira as coach of Málaga and in the following campaign oversaw a fourth-placed league finish, the club's best ever. • In an echo of his feats with Villarreal, he took the Andalusian team through UEFA Champions League qualifying and all the way to the quarter-finals. In summer 2013, joined Manchester City on a three-year deal and won the Premier League and League Cup in his first season, although his next year ended without a trophy. #manuel+pellegrini UEFA Champions League 2008/09 - History – UEFA.com 2008/09 in photos Did you know?

FC Bayern München's 12-1 aggregate defeat of Sporting Clube de Portugal in the first knockout round marked the highest aggregate score across a two-legged tie in the competition. Also in this year • Germany win their fifth straight UEFA Women's EURO title, beating England 6-2 in Helsinki. • Usain Bolt sets world records in adding world 100m and 200m titles to his Olympic golds in Beijing. • Pop singer Michael Jackson, a performer for more than 40 years, dies in Los Angeles at the age of 50. • Members of the European Union sign the Lisbon treaty, amending the Maastricht Treaty and Treaty of Rome.

Number Cruncher: Bayern, Dortmund to play 58th Champions League final Number Cruncher: Bayern, Dortmund to play 58th Champions League final hidden May, 23 2013 14:14:38 IST #Bayern munich #Borussia dortmund #Champions league #Football #Kickingaround #Numbersgame #Sports Saturday's final will be the 58th since the competition began in the 1955-56 season, with Real Madrid winning the first five finals. - Bayern Munich are third in the all-time list of finalists having appeared in nine previous finals, winning four times, in 1974, 1975, 1976 and 2001, and losing five times, in 1982, 1987, 1999, 2010 and last season, when they lost to Chelsea on penalties in Munich. - Real Madrid have appeared in a record 12 finals since 1956, followed by AC Milan on 11.

Saturday will be Munich's fifth in the Champions League era, only one behind Milan, whose six appearances were between 1993 and 2007. - Borussia Dortmund are appearing in their second Champions League final after winning on their only other appearance in 1997, when they defeated Juventus 3-1 in Munich. - Ottmar Hitzfeld is one of only three men to win the European Cup with two different clubs - leading Borussia Dortmund to their 1997 success and winning it with Bayern Munich in 2001. Dortmund will appear in only their second Champions League final. Reuters - The only others to win it with two clubs are Ernst Happel, with Feyenoord in 1970 and SV Hamburg in 1983, and Jose Mourinho with Porto in 2004 and Inter Milan in 2010. - Franz Beckenbauer became the first player to captain three successive European Cup-winning teams, with Bayern in 1974, 1975 and 1976. Although Real won five successive cups between 1956 and 1960, they had three different captains.

- Since the Champions League format was introduced in 1992-93, no side has won a greater percentage of their games to lift the trophy than Borussia Dortmund in 1997. - They won nine of the 11 matches they played - 81.8 per cent. In contrast, when Manchester United won the competition in 1999 their winning percentage was a record low, 45.5 per cent. - The following season, as defending champions, Borussia beat Bayern 1-0 on aggregate in the quarter-finals. - The lowest attendance for any finals match was for the replayed final in 1974, when Bayern beat Atletico Madrid 4-0 at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels on Friday, May 17. Only 23,325 watched the match. A crowd of 48,772 watched the original 1-1 draw two days previously.

- Georg Schwarzenbeck scored Bayern's equaliser in the last minute of extra time to force that 1-1 draw, but Bayern experienced heartbreak in the last seconds of time added on for injury in the 1999 final, when Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer scored to give Manchester United a 2-1 victory in Barcelona - the most dramatic end to any European final. - This will be the fourth time two clubs from the same country have played each other in the final following Real Madrid v Valenica in 2000, AC Milan v Juventus in 2003 and Manchester United v Chelsea in 2008. Those matches ended in victories for Real, Milan and United, with Milan and United winning on penalties. - Bayern would become the first club to lift the European Cup twice on penalties if they were to succeed in a shootout. They beat Valencia 5-4 on penalties in 2001 after a 1-1 draw. They would also become the first club to feature in three shootouts in the final if the match ends in a draw, following last season's loss.

- Paulo Sousa became one of only two players to win the European Cup with two different clubs in successive seasons when Borussia Dortmund lifted the trophy in 1997. The previous season he was in the winning Juventus team. Marcel Desailly (Olympique Marseille 1993, AC Milan 1994) is the only other player to achieve the feat. - Since Bayern won promotion to the Bundesliga in 1965, the two clubs have met 95 times in all senior competitions, with Bayern winning 41 times, Borussia 25 with 29 matches drawn. - The record score between the sides was Bayern's 11-1 win over Borussia in the Bundesliga in November 1971, their record victory in the Bundesliga. - They have met four times this season, with Bayern beating Borussia 2-1 in the season-opening German Super Cup in August and also gaining revenge for their 5-2 defeat in last season's German Cup final with a 1-0 win in the German Cup in February. Their two league matches finished 1-1.

- Bayern's stunning 7-0 aggregate victory over Barcelona was a record winning margin in the semi-finals in the competition since it began in 1955-56. They also hold the record aggregate victory in the knockout rounds in the Champions League era, beating Sporting Lisbon 12-1 on aggregate in a first knockout round match in 2008-09. Reuters Tradition meets modernism in all-German London showdown - timesofmalta.com Saturday, May 25, 2013, 00:01 Tradition meets modernism in all-German London showdown The Champions League... an all-Bundesliga affair. The all-German Champions League final tonight pits traditional powerhouses Bayern Munich against modernists Borussia Dortmund at London’s Wembley Stadium (kick-off: 20.45) with more at stake than Europe’s premier club trophy. Bayern, four-times European champions, are Germany’s richest and most successful club, while rejuvenated Borussia Dortmund won the trophy in 1997 but came to the brink of financial ruin in 2005.

The Ruhr valley club have recovered on a sporting level under coach Juergen Klopp, challenging Bayern’s dominance in the past two seasons before the Munich club reclaimed the league title last month in record-breaking fashion. The Bavarians, in the first all-German Champions League final, are desperate to erase memories of two lost finals in 2010 and 2012 and reclaim their top spot by beating the team that forced them to go two seasons without any domestic silverware. Last season’s Champions League final defeat in Munich to Chelsea on penalties has been especially bitter to swallow for Bayern but now Jupp Heynckes’s team stands before an unprecedented treble for a German club. Heynckes, who has an-nounced an end to his long Bundesliga career and will be replaced by former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola at the end of the season, could leave after completing a trio of titles including the German Cup, 12 months after what for other teams could have been a back-breaking defeat. “To be able to rise again after such a final defeat last year shows that my players are carved out of special wood,” said Heynckes.

“That is why I am convinced that we will lift the trophy.” For several Bayern players, the final could be the last chance for a major international trophy that has been eluding them with both club and country. Bayern playmaker Bastian Schweinsteiger and captain Philipp Lahm have enjoyed hugely successful footballing careers but, both in their late 20s, they are running out of chances for a big trophy. France international Franck Ribery and Dutch winger Arjen Robben have also had enough runners-up titles in their careers and are eager to avoid being stuck with a loser tag at the third attempt in four seasons. For Dortmund, who lost only one game in the entire competition – 2-0 at Real Madrid in the semi-final, second leg – it is the culmination of a sensational three-year spell. They won the German league in 2011, the league and cup double in 2012 and now get a shot at the Champions League title.

This success has come at a price with Dortmund players, including top scorer Robert Lewandowski, on the wish list of almost every major European club The achievement of Klopp’s young team, characterised by its counter-punching and offensive style that at times is mesmerising, has even surprised some of his own players. “If someone had told me before the season that we would be playing in the final, I wouldn’t have believed it,” said midfielder Jakub Blaszczykowski. “For us, the players and the whole club, it is a great event. Not many of us have had the chance to play in a final like this. This is the culmination of our good season in the Champions League,” added one of three Poland internationals in the team. Enthusiasm has slightly been dampened for 45-year-old Klopp’s team, with hugely gifted Mario Goetze, who will join Bayern next season, missing out on the final due to a muscle injury. The offensive midfielder, for whom Bayern paid a reported €37 million, was injured in the second leg of the semi against Real. Dortmund central defender Mats Hummels is nursing an ankle injury but should be fit this evening.

Last Five Cup Finals 2008 Moscow - Man. United 1 Chelsea 1 (Manchester United won 6-5 on penalties) 2009 Rome - Barcelona 2 Man. United 0 2010 Madrid - Inter 2 Bayern Munich 0 2011 London - Barcelona 3 Man. United 1 2012 Munich - Chelsea 1 Bayern Munich 1 (Chelsea won 4-3 on penalties) Competition Notes • Bayern Munich would become the first club to lift the European Cup twice on penalties if they were to succeed in a shootout. They beat Valencia 5-4 on penalties in 2001 after a 1-1 draw. • Paulo Sousa became one of only two players to win the European Cup with two different clubs in successive seasons when Borussia Dortmund lifted the trophy in 1997. The previous season he was in the winning Juventus team. Marcel Desailly (Marseille 1993, Milan 1994) is the only other player to achieve the feat.

• Bayern’s stunning 7-0 aggregate victory over Barcelona was a record winning margin in the semi-finals in the competition since it began in 1955-56. They also hold the record aggregate victory in the knockout rounds in the Champions League era, beating Sporting Lisbon 12-1 on aggregate in a first knockout round match in 2008-09. Advert See our Comments Policy Comments are submitted under the express understanding and condition that the editor may, and is authorised to, disclose any/all of the above personal information to any person or entity requesting the information for the purposes of legal action on grounds that such person or entity is aggrieved by any comment so submitted. Please allow some time for your comment to be moderated.

Question: Which team hold the record for the highest aggregate win in the Champions League, beating Sporting Lisbon 12-1?
Answer: Bayern Munich