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Manchester City hammered Real Madrid 4-0 in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday, May 17, to win 5-1 on aggregate and advance into the final. They will now take on Inter Milan in Istanbul in the final.
Bernardo Silva scored a brace for City, while Manuel Akanji and Julian Alvarez scored a goal each to complete a miserable night for Real Madrid. It is not often that Los Blancos get destroyed like that in a competition they have dominated over the years.
On that note, let us take a look at two reasons why Pep Guardiola's side managed to demolish Real Madrid’s resistance.
#1 Real Madrid conceded possession too easily
Real Madrid were guilty of conceding possession easily throughout the match. Manchester City started the match in a whirlwind fashion as they did in the first leg. Had it not been for Thibaut Courtois, Erling Haaland could have scored a brace within the first 20 minutes itself.
Madrid struggled to string passes together, even inside their own half against City’s aggressive pressing. In fact, they could play only 13 passes among themselves during the initial 15 minutes, while City played well over 100, thereby keeping almost 80 percent ball possession.
Rodri and John Stones bossed the midfield, as Toni Kroos and Luka Modric were reminded of the fact that they had left their best years behind them.
The La Liga giants also failed in their attempt to slow the game down, as Manchester City sliced their defence open repeatedly with their brisk and accurate passing. Madrid, on the other hand, only threatened with shots taken from outside the box, with Kroos and David Alaba’s attempts missing the target narrowly.
It was a display of passing football of the highest order by the home side in the first half, to which Real Madrid had no answer. The visiting side became more adventurous in the second half as they had no other option, but Manchester City still managed to win back possession quickly enough.
#2 Manchester City used the inside channels superbly
Both Jack Grealish and Bernardo Silva used the inside channels superbly with their diagonal runs to keep the Real Madrid defence on their toes.
Somewhat surprisingly, Carlo Ancelotti decided to leave Antonio Rudiger, who played very well in the first leg, on the bench and started with Alaba as the left-sided centre-back. Rudiger replaced Modric in the second half, but by then the damage was already done.
Bernardo gave Eduardo Camavinga and Alaba a torrid time and then scored the first goal from a Kevin de Bruyne pass through the inside-right channel. Bernardo then scored again with a perfectly-placed header to almost seal the deal in the first half itself.
Grealish then tormented Dani Carvajal in the second half with his dribbling and diagonal runs. With Manchester City ahead by a couple of goals, Grealish had the liberty to hold the ball and he utilized it superbly. The Manchester City substitutes also made their mark as Alvarez scored his 16th goal of the season from a neat pass from Phil Foden.
