Real's 'Decima' dream

Argentina forward Angel Di Maria has insisted Real Madrid have learnt from their group stage defeat at Borussia Dortmund and will not make the same mistake in tonight's Champions League semifinal, first-leg.

Real will also have to cope with what promises to be a passionate atmosphere in the stadium which saw Dortmund receive 500000 requests for tickets for a ground with a capacity of nearly 66000.

Such was the demand for tickets that police had to intervene to restore order when brawls broke out as fans tried to barge queues when the remaining semifinal tickets went on sale yesterday. They were sold out within an hour.

Di Maria said Real have progressed as a side since their defeat in the group stage.

"We weren't at our best in the two group matches, but that's changed now," said the 25-year-old.

"Our defence is more compact and we've got more confidence.

"Dortmund are very similar to us, they're very good on the counter-attack.

"We've experienced that already. Dortmund are in good form and we need to be at 100%."

Jurgen Klopp's Dortmund took four points off Real in the group stages, beating Jose Mourinho's side 2-1 at home last October before drawing 2-2 in Madrid, as the Germans finished top of Group D.

They are now looking for a hat-trick of home victories against Spanish sides after their dramatic 3-2 quarterfinal, second-leg win over Malaga.

Poland striker Robert Lewandowski is reported to be fit, despite bruising his leg in Saturday's 2-0 win over Mainz 05, when he scored for the 12th consecutive league match.

But both defensive midfielders Sven Bender (inflamed pelvis) and captain Sebastian Kehl (foot ligament) face a race against time.

Felipe Santana, who scored the dramatic winning goal in the win over Malaga, will have to be content with a place on the bench, with Germany's Mats Hummels back to partner Neven Subotic at centre-back after an ankle injury.

"Realistically, you have to make Real slight favourites when you look at it from a neutral point of view," said Hummels.

While Dortmund are eyeing a second European Cup final, 16 years after beating Juventus to win the 1997 trophy, Madrid are aiming for their 13th final appearance.

They have suffered three semifinal defeats since last winning the trophy in 2002.

But they got the better of Dortmund the last time the teams met at this stage when they beat them 2-0 on aggregate en route to winning the 1998 title.

The quest for Real's 10th European Cup triumph, known as the Decima, is something of an obsession for the Madrid club.