Man City manager Pep Guardiola was pleased with the 4-0 win in the second leg of the Champions League semi-final.
"We played with pain and we took advantage of it," Guardiola said after the match at the Etihad Stadium on May 17. "Sport always helps you to get revenge."
In the first leg of last season's semi-final, Man City beat Real 4-3. But they lost 1-3 in the second leg and 5-6 on aggregate. With a 4-0 win in the second leg and 5-1 on aggregate this season, Guardiola's team successfully got their revenge.
The Spaniard admitted he was looking forward to meeting Real again. He was upset that his players were criticized for being useless and lacking in character after losing to Real last season. "We played a great game," Guardiola added. "The level of this team is incredible. We won three Premier Leagues in a row, reached the semi-finals twice and the final of the Champions League once."
Guarrdiola celebrates scoring in the Man City 4-0 Real match on the evening of May 17. Photo: AP
Mentally, Guardiola admitted to stimulating his players. Before the second leg of the semi-final, he asked the players if they wanted to play the final against Inter. He stressed that before thinking about the final, Man City needed to overcome Real.
Guardiola also admitted that playing at home in the second leg helped Man City. However, he still praised the result of the first leg. "Real were clearly superior to us in the first 15 minutes of the first leg," Guardiola said. "It could have been worse if they had made it 2-0. We got a great result there with a 1-1."
Guardiola rejected the notion that City would be a failure if they did not win the Champions League. He said City lacked tradition in European competition. He pointed out that Real had won the competition 14 times, while City had only reached the final twice. "You can't always win," Guardiola stressed. "The important thing is to try. Barca lost two finals before winning their first European Cup."
Man City overwhelmed Real 4-0 in the second leg of the semi-final, unlike the first leg at the Bernabeu. Bernardo Silva scored twice in the 23rd and 37th minutes. Real only had 39% possession and five shots, nine fewer than Man City. In the 76th minute, Akanji headed a shot that hit Eder Militao and changed direction to make it 3-0. Man City closed out the victory with a one-on-one finish in the 90+1 minute from Julian Alvarez.
Man City will face Inter in the final on June 10, in Istanbul, Türkiye. Man City have never won the European Cup/Champions League, while Inter have won three titles.
Thanh Quy (according to Marca )
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