Paris will be looking to be on the right side of the small margins when they attempt to overturn a first-leg deficit on Dortmund on Tuesday while Bayern may need to end a long run without success away to Real Madrid when those European heavyweights reconvene on Wednesday.
Here are some key talking points ahead of the second legs of the Uefa Champions League semi-finals.
Paris hoping luck will turn (Tuesday 9pm)
Paris were unfortunate not to score in their 1-0 first-leg defeat in Dortmund, hitting the post twice in a matter of seconds early in the second half through Kylian Mbappé and Achraf Hakimi. The French outfit have struck the woodwork ten times in the competition this season, more than any other team, while only Barcelona (11 in 2011/12) have done so more in the same Champions League campaign over the last 20 years. Can Luis Enrique's charges be more clinical in second leg?
Paris also became the first team to start a Champions League semi-final match with 11 players under the age of 30 since Bayern in 2011/12, offering quite a contrast to a Dortmund team packed with experienced campaigners like Mats Hummels, Emre Can, Marcel Sabitzer and Marco Reus. Can youth rise up to the challenge and pressure of being a game away from the final?
Dortmund make case for the defence
Dortmund continued their fine home form in the first leg and are now unbeaten in their last 11 Champions League games at their own ground (W7 D4). However, they now face a huge test away against Paris having lost to 2-0 at Parc des Princes in the group stage. Their away record in the competition's knockout stages is equally concerning with BVB tasting victory in just one of their last 11 matches on their travels (D1 L9).
The focus therefore shifts to a Dortmund defence which has now kept five clean sheets in this season's competition – more than any other team. One more and BVB will reach their third Champions League final. Hummels was their defensive talisman in first leg, keeping Mbappé and co relatively quiet and winning Player of the Match, and the 35-year-old is ready to shoulder the responsibility in the French capital. "Of course we want to go to Wembley but Tuesday in Paris will be another tough one," he said. "If you want to make it to the final, you have to be able to hold your own in Paris."
Madrid test their invincibility at the Bernabéu (Wednesday 9pm)
Vinícius Júnior's two goals in Munich spared Madrid a first Champions League defeat of the season and left them with a comforting statistic to ponder ahead of the return fixture. They have won all but one of the 24 previous Uefa club competition ties in which they have drawn the first leg away from home (the only exception a 1990/91 European Cup quarter-final against Spartak Moskva) including all five of the ties in which they drew the first leg away 2-2.
Having held their own in Germany, the path to the final at Wembley looks to be very much open. Midfielder Aurélien Tchouameni said: "We wanted a win but the most important thing is that we now have a second leg at the Bernabéu in front of our fans. We know that we are the best team in the world." Madrid forward Rodrygo, meanwhile, feels the momentum is with his side. "Now we head to the Bernabéu with the tie open and everything to play for but we are at our place now. All of us wish the game could kick off right now – we can't wait."
Bayern determined to have their say
Having conceded the German title to Leverkusen, Bayern are fighting for pride and plenty more besides as they head to the Bernabéu. As striker Harry Kane put it: "Everything we're fighting for is in this competition. We've just got to find a way to get it done. Real Madrid away is going to be tough but we've got to go there with full belief and go for the win."
They are without a victory in seven away games against Madrid (D1 L6) since a 1-0 success in the 2000/01 Champions League semi-finals: a result that set them on their way to a 3-1 aggregate win, and a final in which they beat Valencia on penalties after a 1-1 draw in Milan. One bit of precedent offers more comfort: only once before have Bayern drawn 2-2 in the first leg a European tie, in the 1995/96 Uefa Cup semi-finals against Barcelona, when they won the return leg 2-1 and went on to win the trophy.
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