Relieved Madrid give Dortmund their due

Iker Casillas and Sergio Ramos were full of respect for their opponents after Real Madrid CF survived a 2-0 defeat by Borussia Dortmund, going through to the semi-finals 3-2 on aggregate. Taking in the "amazing" arena, Casillas said the absence of the injured Cristiano Ronaldo was a factor in the reverse, while Luka Modrić warned the Merengues would need to "learn fast" if they want to win the UEFA Champions League.

Iker Casillas, Madrid goalkeeper
It was a very emotional match and it wasn't easy for us. We knew it was going to be a tough game – the first leg showed us that. With this amazing stadium and those supporters behind them, Dortmund were always going to be highly motivated.

The absence of Cristiano Ronaldo had a lot to do with our defeat – he's one of our best players. Some people say he's 80% of our team, but I'd go as far as to say he's the player who makes the difference for us. He probably would have tonight, if he'd played.

Sergio Ramos, Madrid goalkeeper
I have a lot of respect for the way Dortmund played. They have a great team and tonight they had the support of their fans too – they didn't reach the final last season for nothing.

Dortmund are a great club with a team that demands respect. We showed them a lot of respect in spite of our first-leg victory and we had various problems. We improved in the second half and enjoyed a bit more possession. Overall I think we deserved to go through.

Luka Modrić, Madrid midfielder
We have to be satisfied because we've reached the semi-finals of the Champions League, but we really didn't play well in the first half. We have to improve and we'll need to if we want to win this competition. After winning the first leg 3-0, I think we were a bit too sure of ourselves. We need to learn from this game fast. We can't allow a 3-0 lead to become that close again.