Olic hat-trick fires Bayern to final and dashes Lyon dream
LYON (1) v/s BAYERN MUNICH (3)
Bayern win 4-0 on agg
IVICA OLIC fired Bayern Munich into the Champions League final with a brilliant hat-trick as the Germans cruised past ten-man Lyon at Stade Gerland.
Leading 1-0 from their first leg, the Croatian striker ensured Bayern had one foot in the final with a 26th minute opener, which meant Lyon needed to score three times.
But any slim hopes they had of a comeback were dashed when Cris was sent off on the hour for sarcastically applauding referee Massimo Busacca after being booked.
Bayern, and Olic in particular, stepped up the pace after that with the former Hamburg star drilling home a second before wrapping things up late on.
Victory means Louis van Gaal’s side will now take on either Inter Milan or Barcelona in the European showpiece at the Bernabeu on 22 May – their first final since 2001.
While Bayern have lifted the trophy four times, Lyon are yet to reach a final, and the French side never really looked like breaking that duck with a nervy display, which bore no resemblance to their last-16 display which knocked out Real Madrid.
Indeed, Bayern scarcely hit to step out of first gear and it was no surprise when they broke the deadlock – Thomas Muller playing a one-two with Arjen Robben and crossing for Olic, inset, to turn the ball home.
Requiring three goals, Lyon surged forward but weren’t helped by shocking misses from Michel Bastos and substitute Bafetimbi Gomis before Cris’ moment of madness effectively ended their challenge.
Olic made it 2-0 with a fine finish following a superb reverse pass from Hamit Altintop, before completing a dream treble with a header from Philipp Lahm’s cross.