Manchester City welcomed Spanish giants Real Madrid to the Etihad stadium in their all-important UCL semi-final second-leg clash having played a 1-1 draw in the previous leg at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Manchester City starting XI: Ederson; Walker, Stones, Dias, Akanji, Rodri, Bernardo, De Bruyne, Gundogan, Grealish and Haaland.
Real Madrid starting XI: Courtois, Carvajal, Militao, Alaba, Camavinga; Valverde, Kroos, Modric, Rodrygo, Benzema and Vinicius Jr.
It was a similar lineup from both sides as regards the previous leg barring a change from the Spanish side as the previously suspended Eder Militao came in to replace Rudiger, who had a great game man-marking in-form talismanic forward, Erling Haaland.
Tonight was a night of historic victory for the Cityzens as they now look odds-on favourite to claim the treble.
Nothing at the moment seems to have the capacity to stop City in taking their stride as everything looks to be going their way.
The first 45 minutes was an underwhelming one from 14-time champions Real Madrid as they were pegged back for the entirety of the first half, simply soaking up the pressure and looking to hit on the break.
Bernardo Silva scored a brace in the first half as Manchester City produced an extraordinary performance to usurp holders Real Madrid and reach the Champions League final for the 2nd time in 3 years.
Real Madrid would have to thank goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois for his heroic saves on the night, because had it not been for him they would have been down by more goals.
Eder Militao also turned into his own net and Julian Alvarez added another late on as City claimed a comprehensive 4-0 win at the Etihad Stadium to power into next month’s Istanbul showpiece 5-1 on aggregate.
Manchester City were truly domineering all game long!
Manchester City’s victory was every bit as comprehensive as the scoreline suggests with the 14-time European champions struggling to cope with the pace and movement of Pep Guardiola’s mesmeric side.
Toni Kroos did the woodwork at 1-0 but it was just a scarce bright moment from a Real Madrid team that was simply overpowered, outclassed and outfoxed.
It was sweet revenge for Manchester City after defeat at the same stage last season and the upcoming final against Inter Milan could now be the crowning glory of a magnificent treble.
The Premier League trophy might be the first to be clinched with a victory in Sunday’s match against Chelsea.
The FA Cup in a Manchester derby at Wembley on the 3rd of June and then the big game itself in Istanbul’s Ataturk Stadium against Inter Milan seven days later to close the curtains of the season.
Real Madrid will look to heal their wounds and recover quickly as they face a difficult trip to the Mestalla stadium to take on relegation threatened Valencia.
While Manchester City play hosts to 12th-placed Chelsea as they look to confirm their coronation in their own ground at the Etihad.
