The best UEFA Champions League semi-finals ever [ranked]

With the Champions League semi-finals fast approaching, this season's UEFA Champions League semi-finals are set to be thrilling and entertaining encounters.

We look at the best Champions League semi-finals of all time, ranking the games based on drama, rivalries, and quality of football.

These games have left an indelible mark on the Champions League's showcasing football's most elite competition.

With late comebacks, fierce tackles, and achieving the impossible, these are the best Champions League semi-finals in history.

The best Champions League semi-finals:

9. Valencia 4-1 Barcelona (Agg: 5-3) - Champions League semi-final 2000

Valencia stunned Barcelona with a 4-1 thrashing, securing their place in the final. Angulo and Mendieta shine for Valencia, leaving Barcelona reeling. Valencia's dominance surprised many, which set the stage for an all-Spanish final against Real Madrid with a 5-3 aggregate win over fellow LaLiga team Barcelona.

8. Barcelona 0-2 Real Madrid (Agg: 1-3) - Champions League semi-final 2002

Real Madrid clinched victory over Barcelona with goals from Zidane and McManaman. Barcelona's 19-year home loss streak against Real Madrid ends, sealing Madrid's place in the final. Real Madrid's victory broke the long-standing record, making this El Clásico one of the most memorable Champions League semi-finals in history.

7. Bayern Munich 0-4 Real Madrid (Agg 0-5) - Champions League semi-final 2014

Real Madrid devastated Bayern Munich with a stunning 4-0 victory. Cristiano Ronaldo and Sergio Ramos stole the show, both scoring braces to secure the Champions League final. Ronaldo's brace set a new competition record of 16 goals in the Champions League. Real Madrid's dominant performance cemented their status as a European powerhouse, with Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti and his assistant at the time, Zinedine Zidane, reminding fans of their European acumen.

6. Manchester City 4-3 Real Madrid (Agg: 5-6) - Champions League semi-final 2021/22

Manchester City went into the second leg at the Etihad Stadium 3-1 down, after a schooling from Ancelotti's Real Madrid side at the Bernabeu. Man City scored four goals in the second leg, but ultimately couldn't kill the game. Real Madrid were relentless on the counter-attack, a trademark of Carlo Ancelotti's side in Europe, with Karim Benzema's double securing Real Madrid's place in the final with Liverpool, where they would go on to win the Champions League.

5. Juventus 2 - 3 Manchester United (Agg: 3-4) - Champions League semi-final 1998/99

Carlo Ancelotti and Alex Ferguson went head-to-head in a classic Champions League semi-final. After a subdued 1-1 draw at Old Trafford in the first leg, a heated encounter at the Stadio Delle Alpi in Turin. Roy Keane inspired the Manchester United comeback with a crucial goal, but it was Dwight Yorke and Andrew Cole in the last ten minutes who completed the turnaround, securing United's place in the final.

4. Dortmund 4-1 Real Madrid (Agg: 4-3) - Champions League semi-final 2012/13

Lewandowski's four-goal haul in the first leg propelled Jürgen Klopp's Dortmund to victory. BVB withstood a late Madrid surge in the second leg to secure their place in the Champions League final. Lewandowski's heroics announced Dortmund as a formidable force in European football and would cement Jürgen Klopp as a BVB legend.

3. Ajax 5-2 Bayern Munich (Agg: 5-2) - Champions League semi-final 1994/95

Ajax's emphatic 5-2 victory in the second leg, led by Litmanen's brace, secured their place in the Champions League final. Finidi George, Ronald de Boer, and Overmars contributed to Ajax's memorable win. Ajax's youthful team dismantled an experienced Bayern Munich with an incredible attacking display in what was a thrilling encounter.

2. Ajax 2-3 Tottenham (Agg: 3-3) - Champions League semi-final 2018/19

Ajax took a first-leg lead of 1-0 into a home second-leg tie with Spurs. Spurs, led by Mauricio Pochettino at the time, were all but until Lucas Moura's miraculous second-half hat-trick sent Tottenham through to the Champions League final on away goals. The goal came dramatically late, on 90+6 minutes with Delle Alli stealing the headlines with his ingenious flick to put Lucas Moura through 1-on-1 with Ajax goalkeeper André Onana in stoppage time.

1. Liverpool 4 - 0 Barcelona (Agg: 4-3) - Champions League semi-final 2018/19

Lionel Messi's brace in the first leg had all but put Barcelona through to the Champions League final. Many didn't believe that Liverpool could overturn such a deficit, however, Anfield that night was electric, which inspired Liverpool's remarkable comeback in the second leg. Origi and Wijnaldum stunned Barcelona, with Origi scoring from a quick Trent Alexander-Arnold corner to complete the victory. This game has to go down as one of the best Champions League finals in history.

These are the best Champions League semi-finals of all time, with history still to be made this season. The late drama, incredible comebacks and sublime individual efforts make these games the most iconic semi-finals ever, which are highly worth rewatching for any fan.