History made. When Pep Guardiola arrived at Manchester City in 2016, many expected that the experienced manager was hired to help the Sky Blues win their first Champions League title. Seven years later, Guardiola delivered. And it came in some style.
City’s Champions League title was the third trophy they acquired in as many weeks this season. Having pipped Arsenal to this year’s Premier League title, and having defeated cross-town rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup, the Sky Blues finally earned their European title. Manchester City are only the second team in English football history to win the treble, and it will be an event to remember in the blue side of Manchester.
But it did not come easy. Having routed RB Leipzig in the Round of 16, Bayern München in the quarter-finals, and Real Madrid in the semi-finals, some expected City to overcome Internazionale without much difficulty. What transpired, however, was a very defensive match.
The first opportunity in the final came to City in the fifth minute. Bernardo Silva received the ball at the top of the box from Rodri, and after dancing past some defenders, he fired toward the goal. The ball, however, fizzed wide. Then, after patiently waiting out the match, Kevin De Bruyne slid Erling Håland through on goal in the 27 minutes.
The Norwegian striker shot on goal, but it was saved. De Bruyne had a shot on goal one minute later, but it was easily collected. Internazionale would then make things interesting during the remainder of the first half, but ultimately it would end 0-0.
The biggest moment occurred when De Bruyne came off with an unforced injury, and he would be replaced by Phil Foden. Nerves began to set into the match, and the commentators pondered if it would be déjà vu from the 2020-2021 season when Chelsea defeated Manchester City in the final.
Manchester City dominated possession in the second half
The second half began with similar energy, where City dominated possession and successful passages of play. Internazionale then had their first serious attempt on goal when Bernardo and Manuel Akanji had a miscommunication in the back. In the 57th minute, Bernardo passed the ball backwards to Akanji. The latter believed that there was space for Ederson to collect, but his error allowed Internazionale striker Lautaro Martínez to pounce on the ball.
Ederson would force Martínez wide, and the City goalkeeper would make a crucial save to keep the match level. Ten minutes later, City’s dominance was rewarded. Coincidentally, it would be Akanji and Bernardo who would set up the goal. Akanji would collect the ball at the top of the Internazionale box. The centre-back made a pass allowing Bernardo to run through into the box. He would cut the ball to the top of the box, and an unmarked Rodri would fire home. City had taken an important lead.
As expected, Internazionale then piled on the pressure. Minutes later, the Italians nearly grabbed an equalizer. After some miscommunication in the box, Federico Dimarco would head the ball toward the goal. Ederson attempted to save, but he tripped backwards. Fortunately for the City keeper, the ball bounced off the crossbar.
Dimarco would head the ball again, but it would go straight into teammate Romelu Lukaku. Eventually, City cleared the danger, and it would be a massive let-off for the English side. A few minutes later, Lukaku tried to atone for his error by collecting the ball and firing toward goal, but Ederson collected. City was experiencing some nervy moments, but their defense was holding firm.
By the end of the match, Internazionale nearly stole a last-minute equalizer to force extra time on two occasions. First, in the 88th minute, Lukaku headed the ball toward goal. Ederson would save, and City centre-back Rúben Dias cleared the rebound for a corner. Then, in the last minute of stoppage time, Robin Gosens headed the ball toward the goal from a corner, and Ederson once again made a crucial save. On several occasions, the Italians thought that they would steal a result, but repeatedly, City’s goalkeeper came up big.
Alas, Internazionale would not force extra time. The match would end 1-0 in Manchester City’s favor. The Sky Blues had finally done it. They had won their first Champions League title. History has been made. Where will Manchester City go from here?