There was widespread joy in the German press on Thursday as Bayern Munich's 3-0 win at Barcelona means the Bavarians will face Borussia Dortmund in an all-German Champions League final on May 25 -- the first time two Bundesliga clubs will contest a European Cup final.
After Bayern had trounced Barca at Munich's Allianz Arena 4-0 in the semi-final first leg, Jupp Heynckes' side booked their third Champions League final in four years with Wednesday's second leg romp at the Camp Nou for a 7-0 aggregate win
They will face arch-rivals Dortmund at Wembley after Borussia came through their semi-final 4-3 on aggregate against Real Madrid after Poland's Robert Lewandowski scored four goals in their 4-1 first-leg victory before Real won the return 2-0 in Madrid on Tuesday.
"We are the Champions League - Bayern destroy Barca!" boasted Bild, a play on the April 2005 headline when Germany's Benedikt XVI was elected Pope under the headline "We're the Pope!".
Broadsheet Die Welt took a much more conservative line: "Reasons to be proud, but please no triumphalism!" as Germany will end their 12-year wait for another Champions League title after Bayern's last European triumph in the 2001 final.
An editorial reminded delighted fans in football-mad Germany of former national coach Franz Beckenbauer's famous boast "German football will be unbeatable for years to come" after the 1990 World Cup triumph -- which came before a slump in their fortunes at major tournaments.
But there was no denying the pride of having seen off Spanish giants Barca, albeit without their stars Lionel Messi and Sergio Busquets.
"It was the wind of a new era. Bayern not only humiliated Barcelona for the second time in a week, they did it in much better fashion against a Barca team who are usually excellent," adds Die Welt.
Weekly newspaper Zeit was just as gushing.
"With disconcerting ease, Bayern sent FC Barcelona to a historic defeat. It could be the beginning of an era, and the end of another," Zeit wrote.
"3-0 at Camp Nou, 7-0 on aggregate! Bayern won with a cool authority, commanding and confident. It's the third final in four years - what an achievement!"
The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung broadsheet kept it simple: "Bayern follow Dortmund into the dream final" and had respectful sympathy for Barca.
"In the end, you have to have compassion for Barcelona: FC Bayern demystified the Spanish for a second time as Barca surrendered 3-0 at home and left Messi on the bench," wrote FAZ.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel summed up the feelings of most of her compatriots when she wrote on her Facebook page: "I'm really pleased. One thing is for sure: Germany will win!"
The German public have tuned in to watch the football in their droves.
Bayern's 3-0 win at Barcelona was the most-watched television show of 2013 so far with 15.91 million viewers, a market share of 46.2 percent and a German record for a Champions League semi-final.
The previous record had been set the week before by Dortmund when 13.7 million Germans tuned in to watch Borussia beat Real Madrid 4-1 in Dortmund.
Bayern, who won this season's Bundesliga title with a record six games to spare, are at second-placed Dortmund on Saturday in the German league in a dress-rehearsal for the Champions League final in London.
Source: AFP
