Champions League: Real Madrid reach final after another miracle at the Bernabeu

Real Madrid are the comeback kings of Europe and the miracle at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday evening against Manchester City has proven it once more. Los Blancos scored three goals after the 90th minute to secure their passage into the UEFA Champions League final despite having been down 3-5 on aggregate up until the final minute of regulation time in the second leg.

Manchester City arrived at the Spanish capital carrying a 4-3 advantage from the first leg at the Etihad Stadium. They knew that a 1-goal advantage over Los Blancos is a very small cushion, but they were able to frustrate the hosts throughout most of the second leg.

Real Madrid tried to be aggressive, but even Karim Benzema could not find the target despite several early attempts. It was an intense battle, and a riot almost broke out in the early stages after Aymeric Laporte slapped Luka Modric in the face. The Sky Blues were lucky that referee Daniele Orsato did not give out a straight red for the slap, which would have brought them down to ten men with most of the match still to play.

After the break, Real Madrid knew they needed to score, but Vinicius Junior's efforts were simply not enough to make a breakthrough. Then, all the blood in the stands at the Bernabeu went cold when Riyad Mahrez fired a scorching strike into the back of Thibaut Courtois' net in the 73rd minute.

Trailing 3-5 on aggregate, Los Blancos were in dire straits, and it seemed like City could extend the lead further after Jack Grealish shot past Courtois. Luckily, Ferland Mendy cleared the ball from halfway through the line.

The clock was winding down but apparently not quickly enough for Manchester City. Substitute Rodrygo Goes came in for Toni Kross and made all the difference by scoring in the 90th minute to finally trigger Real Madrid's sensational comeback.

Karim Benzema may have been unable to find the target so far, but he was spot on when he fed Rodrygo to tap into the net right at the end of regulation time. Real Madrid were still a goal down, but they needed only one of the six minutes of stoppage time to find the equaliser. It was Rodrygo again who scored from a pinball move with a header that first flicked off Marco Asensio's head from a Carvajal cross.

With the aggregate score tied at 5-5, anyone who has ever watched a Real Madrid comeback already knew what was coming. Indeed, it was Benzema's time to shine. The Frenchman scored a penalty into the lower-right corner past Ederson early into extra time and the "remontada" was complete.

Manchester City didn't stand a chance after that and it was indeed yet another magical European night like no other at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium. They have booked a rematch of the 2018 final against Liverpool, after Jurgen Klopp's men went past Villarreal in the other semi-final.