I have an ominous feeling about this match and how many times does a City fan get to have an ominous feeling? The worst loss in City history was the 2021 Champions League Final to Chelsea. Thomas Tuchel outcoached Pep. We had beaten Chelsea twice in the Premier League season, 1-0 both times but Tuchel had a defensive game plan that literally shut City out 1-0 in the Final. City people, official and fannies, were stunned. Pep has never talked about that match.
Now we face Real Madrid in the semi-finals. Real, the 14-time Champions League champions. Real, the defending champions. City got Erling Haaland specifically to win the UCL but in the first leg of the tie in Madrid, Real shut down Erling, the greatest goal scorer in Premier League history. That first leg ended in a 1-1 draw, the away goal usually key, meaning, usually, that City got the advantage in the draw. But Real outplayed us. They have the advantage. I remember the 2022 Final. Liverpool was confident and expressed their confidence. Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois responded: "When Madrid play in Finals, they win." Mic drop. They did too.
Carlo Ancelotti, who managed Chelsea more than a decade ago, outcoached Pep in the first leg of this semi. Today, Pep is hoping for a wide open game. Leg one was not and as for Leg two Ancelotti said yesterday, "I don't think tomorrow will be a game of transitions."
Maybe overthink this one, Pep.
