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FC Bayern Munich tasted their first defeat in the UCL this season as Manchester City outplayed them last night at Etihad Stadium. Rodri opened the scoresheet for Man City, while Bernardo Silva and Erling Haaland scored two more goals in the second half to secure a comfortable victory by a 3-0 margin.
Match Report
Manchester City hosted Bayern Munich in the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinal. City boss Pep Guardiola set up a different formation last night against Bayern. He played his team in a 3-2-4-1, where Akenji, Ake, and Dias played as the center-backs. On the other hand, Bayern’s new manager Thomas Tuchel played his team in a 4-2-3-1 formation at Etihad.
The match started with both sides playing attacking football. Man City tried to keep more possession, while Bayern were more focused on the counter-attack. But it was Man City who got the first goal. Midfielder Rodri scored that goal with a superb curl from outside the box, which beat Yan Sommer in 27 minutes. Furthermore, Manchester City could have doubled their lead in the first half, but Yan Sommer made a double save in the 31st minute to deny Jack Grealish and Bernardo Silva.
After the break, Bayern Munich tried hard to find the equalizer. But Man City’s defense was rock solid and didn’t concede any goals. Besides, the host doubled their lead as Bernardo Silva scored in the 70th minute with a powerful header. Six minutes later, the Citizens got their third goal with Erling Haaland netting the ball with Silva’s assist. With this goal, Erling Haaland got his 11th goal in the UCL this season. However, Bayern failed to return a goal in the remaining minutes. Therefore, Man City secured a dominating victory in the 1st leg of the quarterfinals.
Guardiola’s thoughts on 2nd leg
Even though Man City easily defeated Bayern in the 1st leg, Pep Guardiola knows the capability of Bayern. Pep knows Bayern can make a great comeback in the 2nd leg, which will be played at Allianz Arena. Pep said, “I know what we have to do there, and we have to perform really well. They are able to score one, two, three, I know it, and the players know it.”
“Here we have our chances. Here in this stadium we are something special this season. When we have the momentum, we are clinical. It is the same in Munich. I have been there for three years. I know what it means and the people. But we are going there to score the goals and to try to win the game. To do that will be so difficult,” Guardiola added.
