Olic overjoyed with Bayern progress

Bayern hat-trick hero Ivica Olic hailed last night’s performance as “the best match of my life” after his treble sent Bayern Munich to their first Champions League final since 2001.

Olic scored all three goals as Bayern swept aside 10-man Lyon to progress to the final 4-0 on aggregate.

The Croatia striker insisted just as much credit has to go to his team-mates.

“It’s incredible to win by this score and to have scored three goals,” Olic told German television channel sat.1.

“We played really well, my team-mates made my job easier by creating a lot of spaces and scoring opportunities.

“It’s maybe the best match of my life, but it’s above all a very good performance by the whole of the team.

“We will have to do the same thing in the final.”

Lyon never really looked like scoring but their slim hopes of reaching the final all but evaporated when Cris was harshly dismissed on the hour mark.

With the score on the night still 1-0, Cris was booked for a challenge and was then shown a second yellow for ironically applauding the referee.

To add insult to injury replays showed that the Lyon captain’s challenge was a fair one.

Club president Jean-Michel Aulas bemoaned the dismissal but admitted the hosts had been vastly outplayed by Bayern.

“It’s good to feature in a semi-final for the first time even if you always hope for more,” Aulas told the club’s official website, www.olweb.fr.

“When you are in a semi-final you hope to reach the final and when you are in the final you hope to win.

“We were up against a stronger team than us, as much on a technical level as on a physical one.

“Even their injured players ran like rabbits.

“It’s a pity that Mr Busacca sent off Cris.

“The fans were absolutely fantastic, even when we were losing.

“Great clubs know how to lose with their heads held high. OL are a great team and great teams never die.”