The word derby has been used so badly in football that there will be different versions of the same derby. For example, many AC Milan fans are very unconvinced by the definition of the Italian national derby, why is Inter Milan and Juventus a national derby, but AC Milan and Juventus are not? But to be honest, the Italian national derby has a strong sense of history and has been defined very early. Moreover, from the 80s until the phonegate, Inter and Juventus were the only Serie A teams that had not been relegated, and the match between the two teams was definitely worthy of the Italian national derby.
So, what about the European Derby?
Of course, we're talking about clubs. When it comes to European derby, we definitely have the Champions League as a frame of reference. Perhaps many fans will be judged by the number of titles won, Real Madrid is definitely the first, and AC Milan is the second. But the problem is that the number of titles won does not fully represent the results of the Champions League, in fact, in terms of the total number of Champions League points, Bayern is the second European giant after Real Madrid. And AC Milan is not even third. In fact, Bayern's results in the Champions League history have been very consistent, and in Europe, perhaps only Real Madrid can rank ahead of them.
So, the European derby is Real Madrid vs. Bayern. There is no doubt about it.
In this season's Champions League, Real Madrid and Bayern meet in the semi-finals, we can watch the European derby again. In fact, in the past ten years, Real Madrid and Bayern have played each other frequently in the Champions League, and each time they will stage a classic battle. But there is a big regret, every time the two teams meet, it is not in the final. The European derby, of course, is the pinnacle of European football and deserves to appear in the Champions League final, but in fact, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich may have played each other more than 20 times in the Champions League, but none of them have come in the final.
In the history of the Champions League, there have been three chances, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich came close to meeting in the Champions League final, but in the end they still regretted missing out.
The first was in the Champions League in the 80-81 season, when Liverpool beat Real Madrid 1-0 in the final. In the semifinals at that time, Real Madrid eliminated Inter Milan and Liverpool eliminated Bayern. Therefore, Real Madrid reached the final, but Bayern lost to Liverpool, which was in full swing at the time.
At that time, Real Madrid had won the championship 6 times, and Bayern also had 3 titles in hand, and if the two teams had a final, it would definitely deserve the words European derby.
The second and third time we were familiar with each other. The second time was the Champions League in the 12-13 season, with a direct clash between La Liga and the Bundesliga in the semi-finals, Real Madrid vs. Borussia Dortmund, Bayern vs. Barcelona. In terms of strength, the La Liga duo seem to be a little stronger, but the result of the game was beyond our expectations, Real Madrid was completely beaten by Lewandowski's big four, and even if they recovered two goals in the second leg, it was still to no avail. And Barcelona was directly drunk by Seven Up and unconscious.
In fact, Real Madrid is still a pity, after all, it is only one goal away from reaching the final. Considering that Bayern directly shredded Barcelona to reach the final, this is the closest the two teams have come to meeting in the final.
The third time was the Champions League in the 15-16 season, in the semi-finals, Real Madrid beat Manchester City and reached the final, while Bayern met Atletico Madrid, who was more like a German team than themselves, and finally Atletico Madrid's iron temperament was better than Bayern's and reached the final. In fact, in terms of strength, Bayern is stronger than Atletico Madrid, if they can beat Atletico Madrid, won't they meet Real Madrid in the final?
To be honest, it is not easy for Real Madrid and Bayern to reach the semi-finals, and it is even more difficult to meet if they are in different halves. The above three chances really brought the European derby infinitely close to the Champions League final, but in the end, either you are not competitive, or I am not competitive, or neither of us is competitive. However, in the future, I still hope that the European derby will be staged in the Champions League final sooner or later. Perhaps, in ten years, we will be able to see this scene.