Bayern Munich vs. Real Madrid: Los Blancos Will Bounce Back from Crushing Defeat

Real Madrid were this close to earning a draw at Bayern Munich on Tuesday, a result that no doubt would have been just fine with Los Blancos.

Mario Gomez ruined it.

With the score tied at 1-1 in the 89th minute, Gomez was able to knock home an excellent delivery from Philipp Lahm to give Bayern a 2-1 advantage. Allianz Arena went absolutely crazy.

That was pretty much it for Los Blancos. Three minutes of stoppage time weren't enough for them to mount an attack, something they had done sparingly in the first 90 minutes of the match.

Now Jose Mourinho's club has their work cut out for them. Los Blancos must win the next leg of their semifinal matchup against Bayern, either by a score of 1-0 or by two goals. Judging from what they saw on Tuesday, Los Blancos know that Bayern will not be so easily dispatched.

It doesn't help that Real Madrid simply did not play well. Bayern dominated much of the match, and the only goal Real Madrid got came on an easy punch-in by Mesut Ozil during which Bayern's back line basically stood around and watched.

Real Madrid had several big chances to score throughout the match, so it's oddly fitting that the only goal they scored came on a play where Bayern basically gave it to them.

Real didn't give Bayern Gomez's game-winner. Los Blancos could have played the situation better than they did, but they got beat—plain and simple. Saying they got beat is a pretty good way to sum up the match as a whole, for that matter.

And now for the bright side. Yes, Real Madrid were dominated for much of the match. Yes, they were fortunate to manage even one goal. So on balance, the fact that it took a late goal for the ages for Bayern to beat them is actually rather impressive.

By all rights, Bayern probably should have won Tuesday's game going away. They didn't. A sloppy Real Madrid squad made them fight for a win. If a sloppy Real Madrid squad can do that away from home, one can't help but imagine what an on-form Real Madrid squad can do against Bayern at home.

Short answer? An on-form Real Madrid squad will be able to get the win they need against Bayern next week at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu.

Real Madrid are a lot better than they showed on Tuesday. I know that, you know that and Bayern Munich most certainly know that. From now until next Wednesday, Mourinho will be hard at work getting his squad ready to play up to their capabilities.

He will not fail.