Napoli will face Juventus in Wednesday's final at the Italian capital's Stadio Olimpico.
Dries Mertens headed in the equaliser after 85 minutes in Naples to surpass former Argentine ace Diego Maradona, who hit 81 league goals between 1984 and 1991.
Jerome Boateng, Mario Gomez and Julian Draxler helped world champions Germany defeat Slovakia in the Round of 16 encounter in Lille
Russia pushed in the second half but were left with too much to do, even if Denis Glushakov got one back in the 80th minute to set up a grandstand finale
Bale's price tag has caused ripples with some, including Real Madrid assistant coach Zinedine Zidane, who called it "incomprehensible" in the current economic climate.
Earlier, Marek Hamsik scored his second brace in as many Serie A games and Gonzalo Higuain netted his first goal for Napoli as Rafael Benitez's side won 4-2 at Chievo.
A first-half opener from Jose Callejon and a brace from Slovakian forward Marek Hamsik sealed the points for Napoli against Bologna.
The club's star striker, Uruguayan Edinson Cavani, and Swiss defender Valon Behrami have both been robbed in recent years while the partners of former Napoli forward Ezequiel Lavezzi - now at Paris Saint-Germain - was also mugged.
Chelsea midfielder Juan Mata has told his team-mates they can stage a dramatic fightback against Napoli if they treat the Champions League last 16 second-leg tie like a cup final.
AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has been voted the Serie A player of 2011 by his fellow players, and the Rossoneri won another award with Massimilliano Allegri winning best coach.