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Photo: TOBIAS SCHWARZ / AFP
The defending champions of FC Barcelona are playing for victory in the Champions League again this year.
Although Europe's superior team lost the second leg of the semifinals at VfL Wolfsburg 0:2 (0:0), progress was no longer in danger after the sensational 5:1 in the first leg.
However, the bankruptcy of the leaders of the Bundesliga had one consequence: For Barcelona it was the first defeat after 45 wins in a row.
The finale will take place in Turin on May 21st.
Who Barcelona will meet there will be decided in the second semi-final between Paris Saint-Germain and Olympique Lyon (9 p.m.; Stream: Dazn).
Lyon won the first leg 3-2.
In Wolfsburg, the clear class difference from the first leg was no longer recognizable, but both sides initially lacked clear chances.
That changed in the second half, Wolfsburg became bolder and quickly took the lead.
After a free kick variant from a central position, the Spaniards couldn't clear the ball, so Tabea Waßmuth tried her luck from distance - with success (47th minute).
Perhaps Barcelona were overconfident, as there's no other way to explain why Jill Roord was allowed to march undisturbed through midfield in the 59th minute.
The Dutchwoman scored from a distance with a low shot to make it 2-0.
Now two goals were missing for overtime.
VfL remained the more active team, but Barcelona now defended more attentively.
In the 82nd minute, Svenja Huth had a good shot in the penalty area, but the international took too much time.
Wolfsburg now threw everything forward and shot from all positions, goalkeeper Almuth Schult moved up with corner kicks.
But the miracle didn't happen.
In the first-leg success, the players were driven on by 91,648 fans at the Camp Nou.
The second leg in the Volkswagen Arena took place in front of almost 21,000 spectators.
The previous VfL record for a women's game (12,464 in June 2014) was thus far exceeded.
Jan