by Manchester City have crashed out of the Champions League after Real Madrid’s heartbreaking penalty exit in their epic quarter-final.
Real took an early lead, beating the offside trap to convert at the second attempt through Rodrygo. It would take hours of patient play, a slow build-up and a chance to be slowly carved out until City was level. Jack Grealish was brilliant for over an hour and eyebrows were raised when he came on – but Jeremy Doku was an inspired introduction in his place.
Doku’s cross was blocked just as far as De Bruyne, who fired into the roof and sent the City fans wild. The Belgians wasted two good chances before the 90 minutes were up, but extra time would follow to extend this thrilling tie. Penalties were needed to settle the tie, with Bernardo Silva and Mateo Kovacic missing their picks to give Real the chance to go ahead – a chance they would not take after a heroic defensive effort.
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Here are the moments you may have missed from City’s stunning exit from the Champions League:
Bellingham shows respect for City
On Tuesday, Jude Bellingham diplomatically responded to questions about his chances of joining City in the summer when he swapped Borussia Dortmund for Real Madrid. Interest came from east Manchester, but his heart was always set on Madrid. Here he was, back in Manchester as an opposition player – having scored here for Dortmund on his previous visit with Erling Haaland as his teammate.
After addressing the media 24 hours earlier, Bellingham was the first Real Madrid player to step out to watch the Etihad pitch before a match, headphones in, receiving applause from the small number of away fans who was in force. Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand stopped, on the side of the punditry duty, and Bellingham videoed him from afar, reacting just like the autograph hunters on the side of the field when Bellingham shot him a smile.
A video of Bellingham praising Dortmund at the Etihad on his last visit went viral, but more so because of Haaland’s gushing reaction at the stadium. Bellingham showed respect by walking around the City badges printed on the floor at the tunnel entrance that day, and repeated the act when he came out before the game for a walk. Sure enough, when he came up for warm-ups and whenever he got to pass the badges for the rest of the evening, Bellingham went the long way around if he was going to avoid the opposition badge. .
City may have lost out at Bellingham, but it’s clear that the Englishman still holds the Blues in the highest regard – even if he sprinted the length of the Etihad pitch to lead the celebration with Real fans after their win .
Walker’s protest at half-time
It looked like Federico Valverde and then Vinicius Jr was upside down in the run-up to Real Madrid’s opener, but Kyle Walker was playing on both sides each time. Walker couldn’t cut out the cross for Rodrygo and could only watch as he turned back from the floor. The hand went up immediately, but the calls were corrected by the assistant referee in real time, and VAR officials did not need to draw lines to check.
That didn’t stop Walker making a beeline for the half-time assistant, who was operating on the other side from his spot at right-back. Walker made his case about something he was unhappy with, and since there were no other controversial decisions involving that particular defendant and officer, it can only be assumed that the goal was the talking point. Walker made his case quite strong as the players walked off at the break, and Walker eventually had to back down.
Perhaps the pre-game change of ends would change things, as the sides switched around after the coin toss. Walker deployed that particular tactic at Anfield and at home against Newcastle and hasn’t played since – so he could be looking to ensure Real were running away from their fans in the second half. Or maybe Real tried to settle City if Nacho won the toss. If it was Walker’s call, it could have backfired.
Dias’ telling response to De Bruyne’s goal
There was as much relief as celebration when Kevin De Bruyne fired into the roof of the net with 15 minutes remaining after an hour of pressure following Rodrygo’s opener. De Bruyne himself was poor by his own standards, but he is a different player in the box and he gambled on cutting out Jeremy Doku’s cross. Yes, De Bruyne was there, and City were level.
As the Etihad erupted with De Bruyne at the wheel, Real Madrid fans came into the corner sharing his teammates with him. Then there was Ruben Dias, telling any team member he could get back, focus, and go for another goal. Walker wore the armband on the night, vice-captain De Bruyne got them level, but it was the third headed Dias who provided the lead.
Just before the equaliser, as City tried to reach their goal, the fans started to sing which is rarely heard to encourage their team. ‘We are Man City, we fight ’til the end,’ they sang. It’s not often heard in these parts as City don’t often have to show their fighting spirit to run a game as they usually dominate. But you can forget that they have a squad full of fighters and that is why they are European and world champions.
Secret talks of Guardiola’s team on the pitch
A recent Netflix documentary took us inside the City dressing room, but Pep Guardiola had to give his team talks on the pitch before and during extra time. That wouldn’t be too much of a problem for the manager – he regularly counsels players after games regardless of whether the cameras are watching, and uses breaks in play to call on players every week. So when City needed some inspiration after 90 minutes of work, Guardiola seemed to focus on the collective rather than offering individual instructions.
Gathering his players at the start of extra-time and then at the half-time break, Guardiola had some brief words for his players after briefly clashing with their coaches. After 90 minutes, he made the tough call to replace Haaland – a remarkable feat even if Haaland has been kept quiet for two legs. Julian Alvarez came on, and at the half-time break, Haaland was encouraging his teammates.
There are only so many tactical changes that can be offered to a squad in that situation, so the bundles sought to serve the purpose of re-energizing the players and motivating them for the challenge ahead. In general, as the players and fans were nervous from the start, Guardiola remained calm throughout (by his standards), and some level substitutions changed the game and he clearly knew the right things to do. tell his players.
In the end, City went out on penalties, and will have to wait for another Champions League spot.
