Manchester City's patience pays off as Phil Foden makes the difference against Atletico Madrid

Atletico Madrid went to the Etihad Stadium and did what they know best to do: defend, defend and defend more, much to the frustration of Manchester City and their fans.

For a UEFA Champions League quarterfinal game, such tactics are usually rare, but it is how Diego Simeone has built his side and he has successes to show for his abrasive style.

While the Argentine's defensive tactics have often worked – and it did against Manchester United in the previous round – Manchester City would have none of it.

The Cityzens completely dominated the encounter, had seven shots and were ultimately rewarded with a slim 1-0 win to take to the Wanda Metropolitano next week.

Foden makes the difference

Pep Guardiola’s frustration was evident when his players kept trying to break down Atletico's low block without any success.

For over an hour, Manchester City labored to create any decent chances against the Spanish outfit, who sat deep and made no attempt to have the ball.

However, the introduction of Phil Foden changed everything. The English youngster replaced Riyad Mahrez in the 68th minute and was involved just two minutes later, setting up Kevin De Brunye to score the only goal of the game.

Foden's directness proved to be a menace to Atletico and his impact in the game was felt by everyone at the Etihad Stadium. At 21, he already has the world at his feet and it is for such performances that he is rated so highly.

City's patience pays off

Manchester City and Atletico are two teams with completely opposite styles, which meant the Cityzens needed to be patient if they were going to get the better of their stubborn opponents.

Despite a few rash decisions in the first half as a result of the players' frustration with not finding a breakthrough, the Cityzens later cooled their heads and bided their time.

Their patient build-up ultimately paid off when Foden threaded a pass on the blind side of the Atletico defense for De Brunye to apply the needed finish.

"We sensed they would play 3-5-2, then they adjusted and went to a 5-5-0, something that in prehistoric times and today is very difficult to attack," Guardiola admitted after the game, as quoted by Marca.

"There is no space, they are strong, whilst we are small and light. It's a question of patience, I told them at half-time that we were doing well, and the game broke down in the second half, but I already sense that it's going to be a similar game in Madrid.

"It was a hard-fought match, a very difficult one. They are masters at defending all together and it's difficult. We managed to stop them running, we didn't create chances but we were patient and got the goal from a Foden connection with Kevin."

Manchester City's patience was tested but Guardiola's side passed the test and they'll need to have a similar attitude when they face Atletico in the second leg next week.