Barcelona squeezed past PSG on away goals (3–3 agg.), with Messi coming off the bench to change the game. And Real Madrid eliminated Galatasaray after a wild 3–2 win in the Bernabéu.
The 2012 final had left Munich in shreds. On their own turf, in the Allianz Arena, Bayern Munich had dominated Chelsea for 120 minutes—only to lose on penalties. The image of Bastian Schweinsteiger on his knees, tears cutting through the sweat, while Didier Drogba took off his shirt in triumph, became a scar the club wore for a full year.
Dortmund landed in the “Group of Death” with Real Madrid, Manchester City, and Ajax. Pundits predicted third place. Instead, Klopp’s men played with reckless joy. At the Bernabéu, they won 2–1. At home, they dismantled City 1–0. They finished top—ahead of José Mourinho’s Madrid. champions league 12 13
“Never again,” Philipp Lahm whispered in the dressing room that night. “We go again. And we finish it.”
The stage was set for a German revolution. No one in England, Spain, or Italy saw it coming. Barcelona squeezed past PSG on away goals (3–3 agg
Meanwhile, Barcelona, still the reigning champions in spirit, tiki-taka’d their way past Spartak Moscow, Celtic, and Benfica. Lionel Messi scored five in one game. They looked inevitable.
2–1.
The buildup was tense. Götze had already signed for Bayern—secretly. The news broke weeks before the final. Dortmund felt betrayed. Klopp called it “a cold shower.”