City-Real Madrid 4-5 after penalties: Spaniards in the Champions League semi-final

Francesco Calvi

April 17, 2024 (changed April 18, 2024 | 00:05) – MILAN

Sir Carletto had said it: “Taboos don’t scare me, I’ve already debunked several of them in Madrid.” And he was right. Almost six years after the last home defeat in European cups, Guardiola’s City loses at the Etihad Stadium and on penalties gives way to Ancelotti’s Real, which joins Dortmund, PSG and Bayern in the semi-finals of the Champions League, where they will find the Bavarians. After the 3-3 draw in the first leg, the Blancos scored immediately through Rodrygo, suffered tremendously, conceded De Bruyne’s equalizer and held on until the penalty shoot-out. The final result is 5-4: Lunin super saves the shots of Bernardo and Kovacic, the former Roma player Rudiger scores the qualifying goal.

immediately real

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Compared to the match at the Bernabeu, Real introduces Nacho in place of Militao, while City sees Ederson, Walker and De Bruyne again. As expected, the match is spectacular but this time Pep and Carletto take the measure of their opponents better. Valverde, Kroos and Camavinga keep an eye on the triangles on the flanks, blocking the insertions of Bernardo and De Bruyne. On the other hand, City speeds up their vertical plays to avoid having to deal with Vinicius&Co’s counterattacks. However, the quality of the individuals emerges in less than a quarter of an hour: in the 12th minute Bellingham tames a high ball and starts an action on the right, Vinicius enters the area and serves a chocolate to his friend Rodrygo. On the first attempt Ederson rejects, on the second he can do nothing: 1-0 for Real. The positive note for Guardiola is that, this time, Haaland immediately proves dangerous. Erling showed up in the 17th minute with a shot that went just over, let a couple of minutes pass and then hit the crossbar. The first half is a succession of reversals, but always with different philosophies. Ancelotti asks for depth from his Brazilian players, while Camavinga, Valverde and Carvajal – sometimes more midfielder than fullback – accompany them attacking the goal. City dribbled with greater insistence, came close to equalizing with Grealish and De Bruyne and pressed high until exhaustion. Will they drop? Not even as a joke.

siege city

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After the break, the hosts are even stronger than before. The Spaniards suffer on the right lane, where the Citizens continue to sting with exchanges and overlaps. Lunin is ready for attempts from Foden and Grealish but, just when the Englishman seems uncatchable, Guardiola decides to replace him with Doku. Rightly so, because the Belgian brings freshness and enters the game straight away. On the pitch from the 72nd minute, in the 76th minute Valverde points, leaves him on the spot and crosses into the middle. Rudiger rejects as best he can, De Bruyne collects and returns it into the net: the balance is re-established. From there to the 90th minute, the vice-captain has two chances to double the lead but fails to exploit them properly: Orsato blows the whistle, we go to extra time.

Rudiger’s ransom

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While Guardiola allows himself the luxury of fielding Alvarez in place of Haaland, Ancelotti finds himself with a problem up front: after the entry of Brahim Diaz for Rodrygo, Vinicius feels discomfort and leaves room for Lucas Vazquez. City continues to push as in the previous hour, but the most striking opportunity happens to Real with Rudiger. Brahim Diaz passes to the former Roma player, who in the 107th minute finds himself in front of Ederson and shoots wide. The defender despairs, but the opportunity to get back up doesn’t take long to arrive: after extra time ends with the score 1-1, the match is decided on penalties. Lunin takes the stage and saves shots from Bernardo and Kovacic, Real misses the first attempt with Modric and then scores four in a row. Bellingham, Vazquez, Nacho and Rudiger, the last in chronological order, mock Ederson and drag Real into the semi-finals. Carletto was right: taboos are meant to be debunked.