MUNICH, Germany -- Manchester City secured their spot in the semifinals of the Champions League as their 1-1 draw against Bayern Munich on Wednesday night at the Allianz Arena was enough to see them go through 4-1 on aggregate.
City held a 3-0 advantage heading into the second leg leaving Bayern Munich manager Thomas Tuchel calling for a footballing "miracle" to occur. At stages in the first half Bayern looked like they could threaten a remarkable fightback as they tested City's resolve with some quickfire attacks, but it was City who should have gone into the break in the lead as Erling Haaland blazed a penalty over the bar following Dayot Upamecano's handball.
It was Haaland who put the tie beyond doubt in the second half as he converted from close range to give City a four-goal advantage overall. Bayern continued to chip away and had a Mathys Tel goal disallowed for offside and eventually broke through City's defence thanks to a Joshua Kimmich penalty in the 83rd minute after Manuel Akanji's handball. Tuchel grew increasingly frustrated with the officials and was eventually shown a second yellow card with five minutes left and dispatched to the stands.
City will now face Real Madrid in the Champions League semifinals, with the first leg on May 9 followed by the return on May 16.
This should prove to be a pivotal week in City's season. Having safely navigated the bumps and scrapes of Wednesday's trip to Munich, they have the FA Cup semifinal on Saturday against Sheffield United and then host Arsenal in the Premier League next Wednesday. Win the next two matches and the treble is potentially in their hands. This wasn't a straightforward match against Bayern but it was Haaland who caused Bayern the most trouble. His 37th-minute penalty should have put the tie beyond all doubt, but his skied effort meant the match retained a nervier air than necessary.
Haaland had already tested Bayern on the counter-attack by that stage, with Upamecano bringing him down when through on goal. Referee Clement Turpin issued Upamecano with a red card, only for it to be cancelled due to Haaland being offside in the build up. Haaland had a decent chance at the start of the second half but shot straight at Yann Sommer but he made amends for that in the 57th minute. It came from a classic City counter-attack as Kevin de Bruyne's through ball found Haaland who glided past a slipping Upamecano to hammer home.
That proved to be enough to silence the Allianz Arena as clear-cut chances were at a premium for the final 30 minutes. Overall, despite Bayern performing well over the two legs, the work City did in Manchester was enough to see them through, along with that dab of magic from Haaland and defensive resolve in Munich.
Craig Burley says Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel got a reality check after his team exits the Champions League at the hands of Man City.
It's two wins from six since Tuchel took charge of Bayern, with the Bundesliga champions exiting the Champions League at the quarterfinal stage for the third season running. But despite the disappointment at another European campaign finishing prematurely, the performance in front of the rocking Allianz Arena should be the blueprint for Bayern heading forward.
The likes of Coman and Sane caused City difficulty, while Jamal Musiala was a constant threat. Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka won the midfield battle but they just lacked that clinical edge up front Coman comfortably got the better of Nathan Ake on the left wing, but time and time again he'd manage to get in behind City's backline but lacked options to turn that into clear cut chances. Eric Choupo-Moting offered a decent presence up front, but John Stones and Ruben Dias managed to pacify his threat.
Though Bayern will be disappointed at going out 4-1 overall on aggregate, there was enough fire in this performance to carry them through to the end of the season.
Tuchel is certainly up for the fight given his outbursts on the touchline. Bayern are two points clear of Borussia Dortmund at the top of the Bundesliga and need to keep the intensity at this level for the rest of the season as they chase their 11th straight German title.
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