Real Madrid came back from a 2-0 deficit to beat Manchester City in the semifinals. 1:45
It's possible thatPep is starting to believe that he won't win the trophy with Manchester City.
City blew their chance of reaching a second successive final when they capitulated and lost to Real Madrid in the second leg of the Santiago Bernabeu after leading by two goals.
- ESPN+ guide: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, FA Cup, more (U.S.)
- Stream ESPN FC Daily on ESPN+ (U.S. only)
- Don't have ESPN? Get instant access
The obsession with winning the competition has become an obsession for the club, and another year goes by with someone else getting their hands on the trophy. While Real andLiverpool play in the same stadium outside of Paris, it's likely that the coach will still be wondering how his team could lose this semifinal 5-5 on aggregate.
The knock-out stage has shown us that Real should never be written off, even after losing to Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea in previous rounds. With 90 minutes on the clock and City holding a two-goal lead, Real had surely run out of luck.
The only team capable of stopping the pursuit of a Quadruple was City, and Ederson had spent 89 minutes largely as a spectator. What happened during the last six minutes of the game may haunt the club forever.
Real's fightback was typical of the great club that they are, but no team at any level should concede twice in the last minute of the game. Some clubs have a knack of getting the job done. The two greatest examples of teams who know how to win when it matters are Real andLiverpool, who will meet in the final on May 28.
The greatness of this club. It is just that. It is a club that does not allow you to give up when it looks like it is all over, it gives you the strength to continue and fight, and that is what we did.
The weight of this shirt, the history of this club, the pride we all have to be part of this club, a bit of everything.
The football heritage of those historic clubs is not present in City. The scars from this semifinal exit will last a long time, despite the billions invested in the club by Abu Dhabi's Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan.
It is a testament to the resolve of this Real team that they were able to pull off one of the most memorable comebacks in the history of the competition. Even though star men such as Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden failed to perform, they appeared to have produced the perfect game-plan, even though they failed to keep Real at bay.
They could not kill Real off. Substitute Jack Grealish twice went close to making it 2-0 on the night, and surely finishing the tie, but on each occasion, he failed to score.
In the premier league, City seem to enjoy the small margins going in their favor, but the ball bounces differently in europe Even though they missed chances, it all boiled down to the fact that they conceded twice in the final seconds of the game.
Football is unpredictable. Sometimes it is like this and you have to accept it.
That has nothing to do with bad luck. It is bad defending. In the 90th minute, Benzema was given space to set up Rodrygo for Real's first goal, while City's defenders left the same player to head in from six yards just a minute later, with Marco Asensio given the time to cross. Where was the game management and determination to run down the clock?
It is possible that their dominance of English football has worked against City because they are rarely tested. When the pressure is on in Europe, there is a lack of judgement in their play that cost them against Real. City went into extra-time with the tie still alive and the chance to take the lead.
Their belief had evaporated and they were at a loss to help. The former Barcelona coach watched as desperation grew and he probably knew the game was over when Daniele Orsato awarded Real a penalty on 94 minutes.
Benzema, who scored from the spot with a Panenka penalty in the first-leg, resisted the temptation to try that again, instead shooting low to Ederson's left to make it 3-1 and put Real ahead for the first time in the tie. They had almost half an hour to get back into the tie. The outcome was never in doubt because Real were driven on by the crowd and the history of the white shirt.
The third time the two clubs will have met in the final, it will be Real who will face off. The wait goes on for City. It is anyone's guess as to when this will end.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
