There is no chance for Real Madrid during their voyage to Etihad, despite the presence of numerous “strong generals.” Man City reached the final of the Champions League for a second time by suffocating the opponent with a relentless оffеnꜱιυе аꜱꜱаᴜlt. Inter Milan will be the final opponent that Guardiola’s coaches and players must defeat to achieve the most prestigious European club competition.
Bernardo Silva’s two goals propel Manchester City to victory
Although underrated, Real displays elegance in this semifinal. However, losing the first leg left them in a precarious position. In contrast, Manchester City capitalized on its home pitch advantage to take the lead by two goals in the first half, courtesy of Bernardo Silva. Manuel Akanji and Julian Alvarez scored at the conclusion of the second half to seal the victory for the English team.
Guardiola did not make any changes to his starting lineup, while Carlo Ancelotti replaced Antonio Rudiger with Eder Militao upon his return from suspension. In contrast to the first leg, Manchester City took the initiative and quickly created numerous table opportunities. Erling Haaland came close to scoring in the 13th minute after Jack Grealish’s cross. Real avoided defeat due to Thibaut Courtois’ reflexes and David Alaba’s goal-line clearance.
Courtois denied Haaland once more by deflecting the Norwegian forward’s header. The Belgian custodian, however, was impotent in the face of Silva’s tight corner. Real’s defense was torn apart by Kevin De Bruyne’s cross, while Silva displayed his ability to make the right decision.
When facing Kyle Walker on the left, Vinicius was mute
Even though this was the first goal scored by the visitors, Real’s response was resolute with Toni Kroos’s long-range strike. However, Real’s defense opened up on the right flank two minutes later, allowing Ilkay Gundogan to receive Grealish’s pass inside the penalty area. Although Militao blocked the German midfielder’s effort, the ball rebounded to Silva, who then headed the ball into the top corner of the empty goal.
In contrast to the first half, in which Manchester City possessed 72% of the possession of the ball, the second half was more evenly contested. Despite controlling the ball 52% of the time and launching six shots to one in the first half, Real was unable to break through a sturdy defensive wall erected by an opponent with superior physical prowess.
The free kιϲk that resulted in Ederson pushing the ball over Alaba’s crossbar, as well as the chaotic situation in the 83rd minute in which Karim Benzema and Dani Ceballos failed to finish, were uncommon instances of visitors’ Ԁаnɡег.
Courtois’s brilliance prevented Haaland from scoring but did not prevent Real from losing
Haaland, on the other hand, had an ungrateful day. After Gundogan’s heel loop, he remained unable to defeat Courtois in the face-to-face match. However, Man City’s diverse successes make them independent of any one player.
Akanji’s header from De Bruyne’s free-kιϲk collided with Militao and changed course, causing Courtois to lose momentum. Alvarez shot gently past Courtois two minutes after Haaland was replaced after Phil Foden’s penalty kιϲk had entirely eliminated Real’s defense.
The tally of 4-0 in a Champions League semifinal is the largest margin of victory. This is also Real Madrid’s worst loss in the history of this tournament, tied with their 0-4 loss to Liverpool in March 2009. In the 2020-2021 season, Chelsea defeated Man City in the Champions League final for the first time. They aim to alter the course of history in the 10 June evening final at Ataturk Stadium (Turkey).