Haaland, who returned home, still failed to score, but the horror of Manchester City is that they are not entirely dependent on the existence of "Majin". The two goals from the B table, the icing on the cake of Akanji and Alvarez, delighted the returning Blues fans to sweep the defending champions 4-0, not only avenging last season's reversal and elimination, but also showing the super dominance of "watching the whole of Europe". Guardiola's side may even have a double crown on their heads ahead of the Istanbul showdown on 10 June, and Inter certainly know what kind of giants they will face.
In the second leg, the Blue Moon, who played at home, lost injured defender Ake, but Gundogan returned; Real Madrid are also the strongest team, and Camavinga's injury is not a big problem. As two of the top teams in Europe, Manchester City and Real Madrid presented a pleasing clash in the first leg, and just as the outside world was expecting another Mars crash, the game became a quadruple of tactics, technique, running and willpower from the start, and the advantage was tilted to the home team.
Pep Guardiola's 343 formation, Rodri and Stones lock up the midfield defense, Gundogan and De Bruyne resolutely cut forward and Grealish and B. Silva have more room to maneuver in the context of Haaland's attraction to the Real Madrid defence. Carvajal and Camavinga could not withstand City's breakthrough on either wing, and the French back indulged in the guilt of giving a deadly gift in the first leg, and the caution of the whole game and the lightness before no mistakes greatly reduced Real Madrid's attack on the left.
Real Madrid only threatened Ederson with a long-range shot from Kroos hitting the goal frame, but City had at least seven or eight absolute chances and the defending champions were able to avoid greater humiliation by Courtois. Haaland had bad luck and his almost inevitable header was blocked by the Belgian with a rib, followed by a header that was cleared. But when Courtois's good fortune always ran out, De Bruyne first assisted B. Silva who cut into the box to break the deadlock, then Grealish and Gundogan who cut forward, B. Silva completed the score, and Manchester City completely killed the suspense in the first half.
Manchester City's possession rate of 70% in the first half was the highest record for the Blues in the semi-finals of the Champions League, which shows the huge advantage. Of City's 13 shots on goal in the first half, only goalkeeper Ederson and centre-back Ruben Dias were not involved, and the attacking points were spread across the third line. Manchester City surpassed the aging Real Madrid in all aspects of the running distance, but the end of the game is already predetermined. Manchester City's five-man attacking combination up front has left the Real Madrid defence exhausted. After Modric and Kroos were replaced, Real Madrid's midfield strength dropped a notch, and in the 76th minute, De Bruyne again provided an assist to let forward central defender Akanji score (UEFA recorded as an own goal), and the game was effectively over.
As Real Madrid's main attacking breakthrough, Vinicius "three zeros": 0 successful passes, 0 shots on target, 0 chances created - was strictly defended by Walker, who peaked at a sprint speed of more than 37 km/h. In the final moment, it was the Brazilian midfielder who faced a three-man forced breakthrough defeat that disgraced the team, and Alvarez, who came off the bench for less than 2 minutes, quickly inserted after completing a steal and easily scored a wonderful pass from Foden, and the score was finally fixed at 4-0, and the spider's goal was enough to make Haaland envious.
It was Liverpool's biggest Champions League semi-final victory since Liverpool's 4-0 win over Barcelona in 2018/19. That year, Liverpool also eventually won the Champions League trophy. It can be said that Manchester City's super dominance in this game is not only a continuation of the Premier League dominance in Europe five times in the last 6 seasons, but it is even likely to dominate Europe for several years like Real Madrid in the Zidane era.
Pep Guardiola has achieved 100 Champions League victories, just below Alex Ferguson (102) and Carlo Ancelotti (107). It was also his fourth Champions League final, just behind Carlo Ancelotti (five). Guardiola will lead the team to the treble of the season, leading Arsenal by four points in one game less in the Premier League, and can win the title early at home against Chelsea as soon as this weekend, with the greatest certainty; The FA Cup final against Manchester United on June 3 and the Champions League final against Inter on June 10 also have orders of magnitude advantages in the squad. If successful, he will be a true legend in the top five leagues, alongside Alex Ferguson in 1998/99 and himself at Barca in 2008/09.
Since taking charge of Manchester City, Guardiola has won four Premier League titles for Manchester City, and is about to win the fifth, winning five titles in six years, forming a complete monopoly comparable to Manchester United in the Ferguson era in the 1990s. In seven years, he spent 1.05 billion euros in the market, creating the world's highest value team with a current market value of 1.05 billion euros. Manchester City are desperate to join Chelsea in officially entering the top giants in Europe with the Champions League trophy. Despite the achievement of Premier League results, club revenue and team value, only the heavyweight trophy in the football world is the golden signature of the giants.
Guardiola has failed twice in a row, and this time with super-goalscorer Haaland, Manchester City can finally truly dominate Europe. Despite keeping a clean sheet by Real Madrid defenders over two legs in the semi-finals, Haaland is still far ahead of the Champions League top scorers and has established himself as a golden boot early. Compared to final rivals Inter Milan, Manchester City's bench depth also has a dimensional advantage. In addition to Haaland, Alvarez can also score, and he and Inter's Lautaro have a chance to become the 10th player to win both the World Cup and the Champions League in a single season.
But Manchester City not only Haaland and the five-man front group of super attacking group, even the back and central defenders can score at key moments, which is the most terrifying thing about Guardiola's team. Of course, the bitter lesson of losing to Chelsea in the Champions League final two years ago is something to be alarmed about. For Pep Guardiola, leading Manchester City to the trophy will also be the ultimate proof of his status as a world-famous manager - without Messi, he can not only enter the Champions League again, but also have a chance to lift the trophy.
Eighteen years ago, Liverpool achieved the biggest miracle of the Champions League final in Istanbul that was 3-0 down, and 18 years later, can Inzaghi Jr. repeat the same level as the Giants? Or, is European football ready for the Guardiola City dynasty?