Guardiola: “We’re here to win the Champions League”
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| City teammates celebrate their victory |
Man City beat Real Madrid 2-1 in their Round of 16 second leg, and 4-2 on aggregate to reach the last 8. Goals from Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus helped City seal the win and qualification to quarter-finals of Champions league.
Leading 2-1 from the first leg of their last-16 tie in February, City hit the front early on at the Etihad Stadium when Raphael Varane gift-wrapped Raheem Sterling his 100th goal for the club.
Karim Benzema's fine header restored parity in the 28th minute, only for Varane to again cost Madrid midway through the second half.
Varane's nightmare started in the ninth minute, with the France international playing himself into trouble, Jesus robbing possession and teeing up Sterling for a simple finish.
Sterling very nearly had his 101st goal in sky blue moments after, but his chipped effort dropped just over the bar.
Ederson had to make two fine saves as Madrid fought back, but City did not heed the warning, and the visitors were on level terms when Benzema headed in from Rodrygo's cross.
Karim Benzema has scored five goals in his last six appearances in the Champions League knockout stages, as many as he had in his previous 26 such appearances combined.
Sterling could have done better with a shot into the side netting following the restart, before Thibaut Courtois denied Kevin De Bruyne direct from a corner.
Courtois was in action again with 25 minutes remaining, tipping Jesus' effort over, but City had their second soon after.
Having messed up his initial header, Varane put nowhere near enough power on his nod back to Courtois, with Jesus nipping in to prod home cleverly from a tight angle.
Handed an Etihad farewell in the final stages, David Silva was inches away from making it 3-1 with a dipping free-kick, but City ultimately settled for what they had as they knocked out the 13-time European champions.
Sterling's opener was City's 150th Champions League goal, in their 76th appearance in the competition, yet they then conceded their 100th goal in the tournament under 20 minutes later.
If they are to end their wait for Europe's top club trophy this season, City's defence must give more support to their stellar forwards.
In their 76th Champions League match, Man City have scored their 150th and conceded their 100th goal in the competition, the fastest to both figures for any English side in the competition.
Though the goal was gaping, Sterling still showed real composure to nudge City ahead early on, and in doing so he became the 17th player to reach a century of goals for the Citizens and the first Englishman since Dennis Tueart in 1981.
Varane horror show proves decisive
With Sergio Ramos suspended, the pressure was on Eder Militao heading into Friday's clash, yet it was his experienced defensive partner Varane who was left red-faced after his two errors resulted in both of City's goals.
What's next?
Lyon, who knocked out Juventus on away goals after a 2-2 aggregate draw, are next up for City on August 15 in Lisbon, while Madrid's focus will switch to the new season.
Pep Guardiola has put down a marker:
He now wants his Manchester City side to go on and reach the holy grail and win the Champions League, the trophy their Abu Dhabi owners crave above all others.
Guradiola outwitted Zinedine Zidane over two legs to set up a winnable quarterfinal against Lyon in Lisbon, Portugal next Saturday.
Asked what this win against Real Madrid means for Man City and their mentality, Guardiola did not play down their chances.
“For us, it is of course important, we beat them twice. Zizou never lost one knockout game. They have the personality, the way they play, you can see it. They are good,” Guardiola said. “But we are here to try and win the Champions League. It is just one step. If we think that is enough, we will show how small of a team we are. To win the Champions League you have to beat the big clubs.”
Man City will face one of those big clubs, likely Bayern Munich or Barcelona, in the semifinal stage of the Champions League but first they have to get past underdogs Lyon, who stunned Juventus as Memphis Depay has led the Ligue 1 side to the last eight.
“I spoke to the scouting department and they told me ‘be alert’ and we have eight days, we will enjoy this tonight and tomorrow, then we will start to think about Lyon,” Guardiola said when asked about their quarterfinal opponents.
Man City are the heavy favorites to beat Lyon and they are the bookies’ favorites to win the Champions League overall.
Pep Guardiola has now piled the pressure on his team to prove just how good they are and even without the injured Sergio Aguero, and with Fernandinho playing at center back, they eased past Real Madrid.
Manchester City have fallen at the quarterfinal stage when favorites in each of the last two seasons and Guardiola knows this is their best chance to win their first-ever Champions League trophy as Bayern Munich or Barcelona are very good, but not unbeatable, if they get past Lyon.
Guardiola looks hungry and he badly wants to win the Champions League for the first time since 2011 as he failed to win the trophy at Bayern Munich and in his first three seasons at Man City.
The stars are aligning for Man City to deliver the one trophy Guardiola hasn’t won since he arrived in Manchester in 2016 and the one trophy the club hasn’t won since their Abu Dhabi owners took over in 2008.
In this year, just a month after they overturned UEFA’s decision to ban them from the Champions League for two seasons, success would surely taste even sweeter for everyone connected with Man City.
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