Bayern Munich remain in the hunt for a treble after Harry Kane and Luis Diaz inspired them to a 2-0 win at Bayer Leverkusen in the DFB-Pokal semi-finals.
Vincent Kompany’s men were once again confirmed as the Bundesliga champions last weekend with a 4-2 win over Stuttgart.
And they will now face either defending Pokal champions Stuttgart or Freiburg in the final in Berlin next month after claiming a deserved win at the BayArena.
Kane put Bayern in front after a dominant start, the England captain lashing home after Diaz had dummied Jamal Musiala’s right-wing cross into his path.
It looked as if that would be the only goal of the tie despite Bayern continuing to create chances, but Diaz lofted over Mark Flekken in the third and final minute of injury time after being played through by Leon Goretzka.
The linesman flagged for offside, but Diaz’s strike was allowed to stand following a VAR review.
Bayern, who face Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League semi-finals next week, will contest the Pokal final for the first time since 2020, when they beat Leverkusen 4-2.
Nice set up Lens final
The line-up of the Coupe de France final is set after Nice booked a meeting with Lens at the Stade de France with a 2-0 win at Strasbourg.
Three-time winners of the Coupe de France, Nice took the lead in the 51st minute when Elye Wahi turned home Jonathan Clauss’ right-wing cross.
And Wahi put the game to bed eight minutes from the end of normal time as he converted from the penalty spot.
Nice will have the chance to atone for their loss to Nantes in the final in 2022, while Strasbourg’s primary focus will be on their Conference League semi-final with Rayo Vallecano, with the first leg in Spain next week.
Atletico undone by Elche
Elche gave their hopes of LaLiga survival an unexpected boost as they stunned Atletico Madrid 3-2.
Atletico, coming off a penalty shootout loss to Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey final, took the lead in the 10th minute as Nicolas Gonzalez converted after a superb one-two with Rodri Mendoza.
But David Affengruber levelled just eight minutes later for Elche after Atletico failed to clear a corner, and things got worse for Diego Simeone’s men when Affengruber harried Thiago Almada into losing possession in his own half and was then held back by the Argentinian in the box.
Almada was shown a straight red card after the referee pointed to the spot, and Andre Silva made no mistake from 12 yards.
A stunning piece of individual play from Gonzalez levelled matters once more as he nodded over the line after displaying tremendous control to keep the ball in play while running down the right byline.
Yet it would be Elche who would have the final say as Silva slammed home his second from the excellent Affengruber’s pull back.
Elche move out of the relegation zone, two points clear of the bottom three. Atletico missed the chance to cut the gap to third-placed Villarreal but are all but certain of Champions League qualification.
Atletico’s conquerors in the Copa del Rey also suffered defeat as Sociedad slipped to a 1-0 home loss to Getafe.
Brais Mendez hit the post with a 14th-minute penalty for Sociedad, who then fell behind when Jon Gorrotxategi headed into his own net. Getafe held on to prevail despite failing to register a shot on target, and leapfrog both Sociedad and Celta Vigo, who lost 1-0 to leaders Barcelona, into sixth place. They and Celta are five points behind Real Betis, who occupy LaLiga’s potential fifth Champions League qualification spot.
