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Rob DawsonCorrespondent
MANCHESTER, England — Manchester Metropolis are answerable for their Champions League quarterfinal in opposition to Bayern Munich after a dominant 3-0 win on the Etihad Stadium.
Pep Guardiola’s crew nonetheless have to complete the job in opposition to Thomas Tuchel’s Bayern subsequent week however objectives from Rodri, Bernardo Silva and Erling Haaland imply they have already got one foot within the final 4.
Rodri’s strike within the first half was a stunner whereas Haaland made a aim and scored one within the second half to achieve 45 objectives for the season, essentially the most ever by a Premier League participant in a single marketing campaign.
– Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, extra (U.S.)
Speedy response
1. It needed to be Rodri
Oh, the irony. It was Rodri’s exclusion from the Metropolis crew for the 2021 Champions League last in opposition to Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea which dominated the construct as much as this tie, so after all it needed to be the Spanish midfielder who smashed within the essential first aim right here.
It was a chic strike, curled into the highest nook along with his left foot after Silva had toyed with a few Bayern defenders on the correct, but in addition served as a reminder of that evening in Portugal when he was surprisingly omitted of the crew and Chelsea clinched the Champions League title.
It stays a speaking level two years on, a lot in order that Guardiola was requested to clarify the choice at his information convention on Monday. He declined, and maybe we’ll by no means know whether or not he regrets leaving Rodri on the bench in opposition to Tuchel’s Chelsea, however he’ll be completely satisfied he picked him in opposition to Tuchel’s Bayern.
If it is a aim that finally helps Metropolis win the Champions League this season, the inquiries to Guardiola about previous failures will lastly cease. In a tie that pitted the 2 event favourites in opposition to one another, Metropolis are in pole place forward of the second leg in Munich subsequent week.
2. Metropolis’s defence main Champions League cost
For all of the speak of Haaland’s record-busting season in entrance of aim, it is perhaps Metropolis’s defence which finally ends up being key to lastly successful the Champions League.
Guardiola’s crew have at all times scored objectives however their dramatic European exits have nearly at all times featured sloppiness on the again. Monaco scored six occasions throughout two legs as Metropolis went out within the last-16 in 2017. Three successive quarterfinal exits in a row between 2018 and 2020 featured Liverpool scoring 5 occasions, Tottenham scoring 4 occasions and Lyon getting three in a one-off sport due to COVID. Metropolis scored 5 of their two semifinals legs in opposition to Actual Madrid final season however conceded six, together with three on the Etihad Stadium.
That they had shaky moments in opposition to Bayern, notably early on within the second half once they appeared to lose management of the sport, however they’ve now stored six clear sheets of their final eight matches and have not conceded a couple of aim in a sport since beating Tottenham 4-2 on Jan. 19.
It helps having a deadly striker like Haaland up entrance however one other clear sheet for Ederson on the Allianz Area subsequent week and Metropolis will ebook a 3rd successive Champions League semifinal.
3. Dayot Upamecano errors imply tie is sort of over
Bayern might need fancied their possibilities of going via had they returned to Germany simply 1-0 down however it would take one thing particular for the reigning Bundesliga champions to progress from right here. After Rodri’s fantastic first aim, Metropolis scored twice in six second-half minutes to present Bayern a mountain to climb with each Silva and Haaland profiting from Upamecano errors.
The Bayern defender was robbed by Jack Grealish within the construct as much as Silva’s header, scored because of a pinpoint cross from Haaland, and when the Norwegian striker made it 3-0 along with his forty fifth aim of the season it was solely after John Stones‘ header had looped over the French centre-back. Upamecano’s evening was summed up minutes later when a easy cross again to goalkeeper Yann Sommer flashed out of play for a Metropolis nook.
Bayern will want all of their fabulous attacking gamers on prime kind if they’ve any probability of turning this tie round however on this proof they do not look able to stopping Metropolis from scoring extra within the second leg.
Finest and worst performers
BEST:
Rodri, MF, Man Metropolis: What a aim to present Metropolis the lead and what a time to attain his first Champions League aim.
Erling Haaland, ST, Man Metropolis: Made one and scored one as he handed 50 aim contributions for the season.
Bernardo Silva, MF, Man Metropolis: Introduced again into the crew on a giant evening and was excellent on Metropolis’s proper, capping his efficiency with Metropolis’s second of the evening.
WORST:
Dayot Upamecano, DF, Bayern: It was the French defender’s mistake which allowed Haaland to cross for Silva to go in Metropolis’s second.
Jamal Musiala, FW, Bayern: Allowed Rodri to skip away for Metropolis’s first aim and was substituted early within the second half.
Leroy Sane, FW, Bayern: Bayern wanted a aim to make a sport of it and Sane missed a golden probability within the second half.
Highlights and notable moments
After an opportunity for Bayern at one finish, Man Metropolis take the lead with a superb strike by Rodri.
RODRI. TOP BINS. 🎯 pic.twitter.com/q5SXNEMSIq
— CBS Sports activities Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) April 11, 2023
Who else however Haaland to seal the win for Man Metropolis?
“He simply leaves a path of destruction via each protection he encounters”
Erling Haaland is completely different gravy. ⭐️ pic.twitter.com/31p7zOtpFT
— CBS Sports activities Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) April 11, 2023
After the match: What the gamers/managers stated
Man Metropolis supervisor Pep Guardiola on the depth of the match: “Emotionally I am destroyed. I’ve [aged] 10 extra years as we speak. It was such a demanding sport. Now I’ve to chill out, a time without work for the fellows, put together for Leicester.
Guardiola on the second leg in Munich: “I do know precisely what you must do there [in Munich]. If you happen to do not carry out very well they’re able to rating one, two, three. I do know that. The gamers know that. It is an unbelievable consequence, however we have now to do our sport with enormous, enormous persona.”
Bayern Munich supervisor Thomas Tuchel: “I will not enable the gamers to concentrate on the consequence. It isn’t deserved and it doesn’t inform the story of this match. That would be the problem, to concentrate on issues we did good. We performed with persona, braveness, the correct angle and with lots of high quality. Everyone is disenchanted and we have now very blended emotions. I advised the gamers they usually felt this doesn’t really feel like 3-0 however it’s 3-0 and it is an enormous, enormous process to show it round.”
Key stats (offered by ESPN Stats & Info analysis)
– Rodri scored his first UCL aim in 44 profession appearances.
– Bayern hadn’t conceded a UCL aim from outdoors the penalty space since Oct. 22, 2019 in opposition to Olympiakos’ Guilherme.
– Bernardo Silva has a aim and an help as we speak after having 0 aim contributions in his first 8 UCL video games performed this season.
– Erling Haaland has scored 45 objectives in all competitions this season, essentially the most ever by a Premier League participant in a single marketing campaign.
Up subsequent
Manchester Metropolis: Pep Guardiola’s aspect flip their consideration again to the Premier League title race once they face Leicester Metropolis on April 15, adopted by the second leg of this fixture away to Bayern Munich.
Bayern Munich: The Bavarians return to Allianz Area on Saturday for a Bundesliga match in opposition to Hoffenheim (9:30 a.m. ET, stream dwell on ESPN+).