REAL Madrid confirmed a Champions League semi-final meeting with Barcelona after a 1-0 win over Tottenham at White Hart Lane completed a 5-0 aggregate victory.
Cristiano Ronaldo, booed throughout by the home crowd, found the perfect response to the jeers by scoring the only goal of the game early in the second half as keeper Heurelho Gomes dropped the kind of clanger Spurs fans thought was behind him. With such a commanding lead from last week’s first leg at the Bernabeu, a 28th appearance in the last four of the competition was never really in doubt for the Madrid club, who managed to keep Spurs’ threat at arm’s length in what was, initially at least, an electric atmosphere in North London.
The result means Madrid will now meet their arch rivals Barcelona, who safely progressed past Shakhtar Donetsk a night earlier, for the first time in European competition since 2002, with a place in May’s final in London up for grabs.
Before the match, Madrid boss Jose Mourinho said Spurs would need to score more than five to progress, such was his belief in his side’s ability to breach the home defences.
And that confidence appeared well placed when after just three minutes Madrid prised apart the Spurs back line and Mesut Ozil homed in on goal: only a weak sidefooted finish from the German World Cup star kept the score goalless.
But, with goals the order of the day for Spurs, the home side also started on the front foot, and just a minute later they had the first of three first-half penalty shouts turned down as Gareth Bale went down under a challenge from Xabi Alonso.