That is all for now. We will be back shortly with the team news and more build-up.
Real should have Nacho available again after injury, whilst Sergio Ramos will be available again after missing the second leg against Juventus through suspension. One player who may not start is Gareth Bale, who Zinedine Zidane has left out for much of the knockout stages, and when he did start, he was replaced at half-time against Juventus.
Aside from those absentees, Heynckes will likely play his strongest available side having rested several key men for the win against Hannover 96 at the weekend, although one of Thiago, Franck Ribéry, Thomas Müller, Rodríguez or Robben will have to miss out. Rafinha would fill in at left-back for Alaba, whilst Robert Lewandowski will lead the line, having scored six times in six previous matches against Real.
Bayern will be without Manuel Neuer, Arturo Vidal and Kingsley Coman, whilst David Alaba missed training on Tuesday as he recovers from a tight injury. Corentin Tolisso could make his comeback from a shin injury, although it seems unlikely he would start either way.
This match will see Toni Kroos return to his former club, whilst James Rodríguez is in the middle of a two-year loan spell from Real and Arjen Robben played for them as well between 2007 and 2009. Heynckes also has history with the Spaniards, leading them all the way in the Champions League in his only season in charge in 1997-98.
However, a double from former Bayern striker Mario Mandžukić plus a third from Blaise Matuidi looked to have earned Juventus extra time in the second leg, before the controversial penalty and sending off of Gianluigi Buffon. Cristiano Ronaldo kept up his second of scoring in every Champions League game this season to send them Real through from the spot.
In the Champions League they have mostly been their usual selves, despite finish second behind Tottenham Hotspur in their group. They swept past Paris Saint-Germain, Neymar and all, in the last-16, and looked set to beat Juventus with similar ease after winning the first leg in Italy 3-0.
Domestically, they have comfortably won the Bundesliga title for a sixth-successive season, whilst they are also into the final of the DFB-Pokal. Real, by contrast, have fallen well below expectations in La Liga, and with five games to go they sit in third place, 15 points behind likely champions Barcelona.
The hosts have had a superb season since Jupp Heynckes replaced Ancelotti in October. They have failed to win on only four occasions, including the goalless draw in the quarter-final second leg against Sevilla, having won the first leg away 2-1. That draw ended a record 12-match winning streak for him in the competition, extending back to the 2012-13 season.
Of course, they met in last season’s competition as well. In a reverse of 2012, the away sides won 2-1 in 90 minutes, but in extra time in the Spanish capital, Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice to complete a hat-trick has they sealed a 6-3 aggregate victory against a Bayern side now themselves managed by Ancelotti. They went on to win a third Champions League title in four years.
Real gained their revenge two years later though against the then-holders. They won the first leg at the Bernabéu 1-0, before putting the sword to Pep Guardiola’s Bayern, winning 4-0. Carlo Ancelotti’s Real then went on to beat Atlético Madrid to win La Decima.
The most recent occasions were in 2012 and 2014. In the former, both sides won 2-1 at home with Bayern winning the penalty shootout to secure a home final against Chelsea, which they went on to lose.
This is the 25th time these two teams have met in UEFA competition – no teams have played either more often. It is the fourth time they have met in the semi-finals of either the Champions League or the European Cup.
Good evening and welcome to VAVEL UK’s coverage of the second of this week’s UEFA Champions League semi-final first leg match between Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. Many would have hoped this would be the final in Kiev at the end of May, but instead we get (at least) 180 minutes of two of the best and most famous teams in Europe coming head-to-head.