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MADRID (Ticker) -- Eight-time winner Real Madrid was frustrated for much of its match against four-time titlist Bayern Munich, but Ivan Helguera and substitute Jose Maria Guti propelled the Spanish giants into a "Superclassico" semifinal. Helguera and Guti each scored their third Champions League goal of the season on Wednesday as Real Madrid posted a 2-0 second-leg triumph and ousted defending champion Bayern Munich with a 3-2 aggregate victory in their Champions League quarterfinal. The victory produces a semifinal clash between bitter Spanish rivals Real Madrid and Barcelona, whose domestic matchups in "La Liga" are referred to as the "Superclassico." The other Champions League semifinal will pit Manchester United of England against another German Club, Bayer Leverkusen. Real finally converted from its 15th corner of the match in the 69th minute. After the ball broke kindly for Roberto Carlos on the left side of the area, the Brazilian star drove a low cross into the six-yard box for Helguera to tap home. The Madridistas avenged last season's semifinal defeat by the reigning Bundesliga champion, which had won six of the previous seven encounters between these two European heavyweights. Real also halted Bayern's 19-game Champions League unbeaten streak (13-0-6). Luis Enrique scored twice for Barcelona on Tuesday as the Catalan club rallied from an early one-goal deficit to get past Panathinaikos of Greece, 3-2 on aggregate, in their quarterfinal matchup. In Wednesday's other quarterfinal second-leg, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer struck twice and Ryan Giggs added another as Manchester United won 3-2 at Old Trafford over Deportivo Coruna, recording a 5-2 aggregate victory. Solskaer's first touch of the match came in the 23rd minute, when he redirected Juan Veron's free kick past goalkeeper Jose Molina. After United central defender Laurent Blanc scored an own-goal just before the interval, but Solskjaer put the home side back in front 11 minutes after the break. Veron split Deportivo's defense with a stunning pass and the Norwegian marksman slid the ball under Molina. Giggs displayed his class with a great solo run with 21 minutes to play as the 1999 Champions League winner advanced to the last four. Brazilian midfielder Lucio scored the decisive goal with six minutes left on Tuesday as Bayer Leverkusen reached the semifinals of the Champions League with a 4-2 second-leg victory against English side Liverpool at BayArena. Copyright © 2002 SportsTicker Enterprises, L.P. |
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