Manchester, United Kingdom, March 10, 2022 (AFP) – Manchester City qualified for the Champions League quarter-finals after drawing 0-0 with Sporting Lisbon, thanks to a 5-0 win in the first leg in Portugal.
Despite controlling the match, City did not display their usual attacking style. He even scored with Gabriel Jesus at the start of the second stage, but the goal was ruled out for offside by the Brazilian.
“The first half was better than the second. After the disallowed goal, we were not very active. We did not move. It was not an easy match, after the first game, almost everything was decided,” Guardiola admitted after the match. duel.
Although he practically secured his place in the first leg, Pep Guardiola did not want to risk it and left only three players on the bench, Belgium’s Kevin De Bruyne, Algeria’s Riyad Mahrez and Spain’s Rodri.
Another change was forced: ailing Portuguese striker Joao Cancelo left his position to young Konrad Egan Riley, who made his debut in a European match at the age of 19.
City started to dominate, but without giving the match the usual pace, which facilitated the defense of the Portuguese, who were not willing to go after the goal also defended by the Brazilian Ederson.
Little by little, Guardiola’s team increased their pace and in the 24th minute the first opportunity to score appeared, with Phil Foden’s shot by Spanish goalkeeper Antonio Adan with his fists.
The other obvious opportunity City had before the break was a one-on-one confrontation by Raheem Sterling with Adan, which the goalkeeper saved with one hand (38).
The entry into the field of Mahrez, one of City’s best players, was noticeable at the start of the second half, when the Algerian’s singles play ended with Gabriel Jesus sending him into the net, although the referee ruled him out. An offside goal for the Brazilian striker (47).
– A goal rejected by Gabriel Jesus – Gabriel Jesus tried again shortly after, but Adhan saved the two-half (56).
In the past half hour, Sporting seemed to take a step forward to search for an honorable victory, and the Englishman Marcus Edwards got one of the first opportunities for the Portuguese team, with a shot from inside the area defended by Ederson (60).
In the final, Guardiola had the luxury of swapping Ederson for Scott Carson, not because of the Brazilian’s injury, but to give the 36-year-old veteran goalkeeper a chance to make his Champions League debut.
Carson responded well by throwing himself at Paulinho to save the Portuguese striker’s goal (76).
Carson failed to celebrate his first Champions League game with a win, but he did when City qualified for the quarter-finals in a competition in which they were runners-up.
“After the result of the first match, the confrontation was practically impossible,” Antonio Adan commented.
“We have to be proud because this is part of the process of growing as a group. The team was better defensively and didn’t play with the same clarity. We left feeling satisfied after the second leg,” the veteran Spanish goalkeeper added.
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