Barcelona vs Real Madrid in the Champions League final? Gerard Pique admits the prospect sounds 'very exciting'
Barcelona are through to the final after beating Bayern Munich
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Your support makes all the difference.Gerard Pique admits the prospect of a Champions League showdown with Real Madrid is "very exciting" after Barcelona booked their place in the final.
The Catalan club reached next month's showpiece in Berlin - their first appearance in the last two since 2011, but their fourth in 10 years - by surviving a second-leg fightback from Bayern Munich to claim a 5-3 aggregate victory in the semi-finals.
Pep Guardiola's Germans won 3-2 last night thanks to goals from Medhi Benatia, Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Muller, with Neymar's first-half brace ensuring Barca's three unanswered goals from the Nou Camp were not cancelled out at the Allianz Arena.
The Primera Division leaders, who are also preparing to contest the Copa del Rey final, will now face either their domestic rivals Real or Juventus of Italy - facing off in the Spanish capital tonight - in the June 6 final.
And defender Pique would relish the opportunity to tackle Los Galacticos in what would be the first ever 'El Clasico' meeting at this stage of the European Cup.
"A final against Madrid would be very exciting and historic," he told Barcelona's official website.
"We have defined an era and I'm very happy to be part of this team. We will remember this for a long time, now it's time for me to enjoy it.
"It makes for good reading that we've reached our fourth Champions League final in 10 years. Over those years we've secured some great results, developed some of our own philosophies, and I'm very happy to have been a part of it."
At his post-match press conference, head coach Luis Enrique was less focused on tackling a particular opponent.
"Which team do I want to face in the final? Whichever one deserves it," he said.
"We're very content, but now we need to win the final. This is a good moment for us but we still have to seal the deal."
His one-time team-mate, Pep Guardiola, who guided Barca to two of their recent Champions League trophy wins, admitted all hope his Bayern team had of progressing to the final was lost once a Lionel Messi-inspired side plundered their emphatic 3-0 victory in last week's first leg.
"We played a good game and we can walk out of the stadium with our heads held high," he told reporters.
"We are sad, of course, after all we wanted to reach the final in Berlin.
"But we lost this semi-final back in Barcelona."
Bayern captain Philipp Lahm added: "We all believed in the miracle. Unfortunately it did not work because we conceded an early equaliser.
"We gave everything we could.
"We did not lose the tie today, that much is obvious, but we lost it instead in the first leg."
Real host Juventus at the Bernabeu tonight needing to overturn a one-goal deficit following last week's 2-1 defeat in Turin.
PA
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