Manchester City stood up as Atletico Madrid tried to bully them and earned a Champions League semifinal spot

play

On a night when Atleti tried everything to make Manchester City lose their heads, the players showed they have the strength as well as the silk to win the trophy.

The home side lost their cool when Felipe was sent off in the aftermath of a confrontation in the corner that involved most of the 22 players and backroom staff from both benches.

Man City managed an awkward tie amid the chaos to see out the game without a goal and hold the aggregate at one, setting up a semifinal with Real Madrid later this month. It wasn't pretty, but it doesn't have to be.

The night ended after more than 13 minutes of the game, with police pulling apart players from both sides in the tunnel, and with Guardiola being hit by bottles as he left the pitch. City can get through anything if they come through this.

There was a melee on the pitch and in the tunnel. We gave everything. We have to deal with these types of situations. We suffered.

We can't expect to make everything great against Spain. The opponent was very good.

Backed by fierce support inside the Wanda Metropolitano, Atletico set out to knock City out of their rhythm as early as the first minute. They didn't look like they wanted to engage with City beyond the edge of their own penalty area, but at home they found a whole other half to play in.

Kyle Walker was forced into a slip after Diego Simeone roared his players forward from his technical area, as he quickly came charging out of defence to thunder into the back of Ilkay Gundogan in the centre circle.

Felipe took it too literally if Simeone had asked for more aggression before the game. Felipe followed up his hit on Phil Foden by grabbing the legs of Kevin De Bruyne, leaving the 21-year-old bloodied and bandaged.

Foden was roughed up once more when Savic barged into his side as the ball rolled out of play for a throw in. The battle between Foden and Savic went on all night.

It would have been easy for City to fold. The Portuguese forward raced towards Ederson only for the goalkeeper to drill a pass through Atleti's midfield and into Gundogan's feet.

In the past, City have been guilty of allowing the knockout ties to descend into chaos, coming off second-best against Monaco in the last two years. There were periods in the second half when it looked like the game would go that way, but this is a City team who look better for the experiences of those harrowing exits.

John Stones made a block on Matheus Cunha in the 87th minute and Ederson saved Angel Correa in the last minute of the game. The clean sheet that sent them through to a second successive semifinal and just a third in the club's history was determined rather than any of their usual champagne football.

The beautiful game is here. Leagues, tournaments and teams can be watched.

Sign up for ESPN+