Man City thrash Bayern in Champions League, as Haaland reaches another milestone
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Manchester City's Erling Haaland celebrates scoring their third goal with teammates.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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LONDON – Manchester City appeared in total control in a surgical second-half dismantling of Bayern Munich on Tuesday but Pep Guardiola looked aghast when a reporter asked if it was the most comfortable his team have felt this season.
“It was not comfortable at all. Emotionally, I’m destroyed,” the City boss said, prompting laughter.
“I (aged) 10 more years today.”
Nevertheless, the English Premier League football giants took a huge step towards a first Champions League title with a 3-0 victory over the visiting German powerhouse in the first leg of the quarter-finals.
Scoring machine Erling Haaland netted his 45th goal in all competitions this campaign, a single-season record for a Premier League player, in his maiden term.
Rodri, with a highlight-reel strike, and Bernardo Silva also scored, taking City’s extraordinary goal differential to 34-3 in their last nine games.
Still, Guardiola said there would be no resting easy until they have faced his former team at Allianz Arena next Wednesday.
“To knock out these teams, you have to have two good games, not one,” insisted the Spaniard.
Tuesday’s game in blustery rain was tight until midway through the second half when Silva and Haaland scored. Both goalkeepers were kept busy.
“Part of the game, they were better than us,” Guardiola added.
“The second half, after we adjusted something and, in the last part of the game, the last minutes of the game, we were better, we scored three fantastic goals, we had more chances.
“Yes, an incredible result but I know a little bit what it means at Allianz Arena. I’ve been there many, many times, three years (as coach) there and I know, in Europe, this team is special.”
Bayern Munich’s Dayot Upamecano looks dejected after Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva scores their second goal.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Bayern Munich coach Thomas Tuchel, who was appointed only in March following the surprise sacking of Julian Nagelsmann, told his players not to focus on Tuesday’s result and held hope of a miracle comeback.
The loss was Bayern’s worst in the Champions League since 2017, when they were hammered 3-0 by Paris Saint-Germain, but Tuchel is not even thinking about that.
“Because I think it’s not a deserved result. It does not tell the story of this match,” said the German, whose side had 56 per cent possession but five fewer shots on target – four to City’s nine.
“That will be the challenge, to focus on the things that we did good.
“We played with personality, we played with courage, we played with the right attitude and played with a lot of quality.
“I know it sounds a bit silly but I really think we deserved a result today. We’ll keep going.”
Bayern are seeking to win their seventh Champions League title while City’s Abu Dhabi owners are still waiting for their first, but Guardiola’s men are getting closer.
Only a remarkable Bayern comeback can deny them a third consecutive semi-final appearance.
REUTERS, AFP
