Bayern Munich hero Olic hails his Champions League hat-trick

| Thursday April 29, 2010 00:00

Olic, who scored all three as Bayern swept aside 10-man Lyon to reach the final 4-0 on aggregate, said the credit should be shared by the whole team.

'It's incredible to win by this score and to have scored three goals. 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 looked like scoring and 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, he was booked for a challenge and was then shown a second yellow for ironically applauding the referee. Replays showed the Lyon captain's challenge was a fair one.

Jean-Michel Aulas, the Lyon president, bemoaned the dismissal but admitted the hosts had been outplayed. 'It's good to feature in a semi-final for the first time even if you always hope for more,' he said. '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.'

Bayern will now meet either Inter Milan or Barcelona who played in the other semi-final last night. (Guardian)