Manchester City win treble as Rodri fires superb winner against Inter Milan

By Sports Desk June 10, 2023

Rodri fired the winning goal as Manchester City finally claimed Champions League glory and completed the treble with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Inter Milan.

The midfielder rifled home in the 68th minute as the Premier League winners City wore down the Italians in a draining final at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul on Saturday.

The contest was a tight one, with City suffering a serious blow in pursuit of the prize that has eluded them for so long when they lost Kevin De Bruyne to injury in the first half.

The prolific Erling Haaland was also kept quiet by a stubborn Inter side but Rodri eventually made the breakthrough with a firm strike after a Bernardo Silva pass was deflected into his path.

It capped a momentous season for City having also won the FA Cup as well as a fifth Premier League title in six years. Their success means they also join rivals Manchester United as the only side to have won all three of those trophies in the same season.

It meant mission accomplished for owner Sheikh Mansour, who was present in Istanbul at only his second match since purchasing the club in 2008 and subsequently propelling them to the game’s top table.

Manager Pep Guardiola could also celebrate Champions League success again 12 years after the second of his two wins as Barcelona boss.

City had gone into the match as strong favourites but Inter proved more than a match, setting out with a determination to soak up pressure.

It made for a slow start and City lacked their usual sparkle.

That gave Inter confidence and Federico Dimarco sparked a threatening attack after seizing possession but Marcelo Brozovic’s shot was deflected wide.

Ederson also seemed nervous and misplaced a pass that handed Nicolo Barella a long-range sight of goal. Fortunately for the Brazilian, Barella’s effort was nowhere near the target.

Haaland had his first attempt after being played in by De Bruyne but Andre Onana blocked his first-time shot.

De Bruyne tried his luck himself from distance but his effort lacked power and his final was, once again, to end in frustration soon after.

The Belgian went down clutching his hamstring 10 minutes before the interval and, despite attempts to run off the problem, was forced to admit defeat soon after and was replaced by Phil Foden.

It meant further Champions League final woe for De Bruyne after he left the field with a facial injury during City’s loss to Chelsea two years ago.

The opening stages of the second half followed a similar pattern but Inter eventually started to assert themselves more and they began to look dangerous.

City had a let-off just before the hour when Manuel Akanji reacted slowly to a Silva pass and Lautaro Martinez charged into the box. Former Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku was well placed in the centre but Martinez opted to shoot and Ederson smothered his effort.

City made the most of that reprieve and took the lead moments after a John Stones cross was deflected close to his own goal by Alessandro Bastoni.

Akanji played the key pass as he picked out Silva and his cutback eventually fell to Rodri, who thumped the ball into the net from the edge of the area.

City fans greeted the strike with a mixture of celebration and relief but they were given a scare minutes later when Dimarco hit the bar with a looping header and then headed against Lukaku on the rebound.

Foden had a chance to put City in firm control when he burst through a gap into the area but Onana got down well to save.

City survived a late scare when a Lukaku header hit Ederson’s legs and was put behind by Ruben Dias and the final whistle was greeted by jubilant celebrations.

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    Vanni Sartini opened his arms to an unlikely addition to the Vancouver Whitecaps’ fanbase in their deciding fixture against Los Angeles FC in the MLS playoffs.

    In the Whitecaps’ wild card match against the Portland Timbers, a game they won 5-0, opposition manager Phil Neville believed that God was on his side after the game was played at Providence Park, despite Vancouver finishing higher in the Western Conference.

    Sartini explained after the result that he did not believe in God but said he would be a welcome Whitecaps supporter in their must-win encounter at the BMO Stadium.

    “I don’t know. After last time when I said that I don’t think he exists, I don’t know if he wants to become part of the Whitecaps, but if he does, we will give him an honorary card,” Sartini said.

    The Whitecaps forced a deciding game in their best-of-three series after beating LAFC 3-0 at BC Place, the only tie to go the distance in the West.

    Vancouvers’ postseason form has seen them play some of their best football this term, and Sartini is hoping for that to continue.

    “We had a run in the late summer, and we were playing really well, and we have achieved that same level, and it’s the level of a top four team to be honest,” Sartini added.

    “The three games, we knew that the conditions were going to be back, and we knew we were gearing towards the playoffs with all the players arriving and ready to go.

    “I know that we will play a good game in Los Angeles, we will. If we win, I don’t know. We will honour this playoff run.”

    LAFC, meanwhile, will be aiming to avenge their defeat in Game 2, hoping not to become the second high-profile casualty in the playoffs after the Columbus Crew were eliminated by the New York Red Bulls in the Eastern Conference bracket.

    Ryan Gauld opened the scoring in the 10th minute before two own-goals either side of half-time from Ryan Hollingshead and Eddie Segura sealed the win for Vancouver.

    LAFC head coach Steve Cherundolo bemoaned his side’s slow start to proceedings after finding themselves two goals down inside 13 minutes and is looking to rectify that on home turf this time around.

    “If you go back to the 11 games that we lost this season, it has always been the crucial moments at the beginning of the half where we make mental lapses and errors,” Cherundolo said.

    “It was a little sloppy mentally and tactically in those moments and that is just not good enough to win games. Against Vancouver, it is difficult because they are a team full of energy.

    “They almost always capitalise on opponents’ mistakes, and they did against us. We have nothing to blame but ourselves and we will look to correct those errors in training.”

    PLAYERS TO WATCH

    LAFC – Denis Bouanga

    Despite not finding the back of the net in Game 2, Bouanga will be hoping to get himself back among the goals against one of his favoured opponents in the MLS.

    He has recorded at least one goal contribution in all five home matches he’s played against Vancouver in all competitions, totalling four goals and four assists over the five matches.

    Vancouver Whitecaps – Ryan Gauld

    Gauld has scored in four straight matches for the Whitecaps going back to the end of the regular season, including a goal during his side’s victory in Game 2.

    The only Whitecaps player to score in five straight MLS matches (regular season and playoffs) is Camilo Sanvezzo between June and July 2013.

    MATCH PREDICTION: LAFC WIN

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    Vancouver’s 3-0 win last time out ended an eight-match winless run in the best-of-three series. (D2 L6). They have managed only one win in 12 all-time away matches against LAFC (D4 L7) but did beat the Black and Gold in a penalty shootout at BMO Stadium in the Leagues Cup this year.

    The Whitecaps’ triumph in Game 2 was their third all-time playoff victory (D2 L8). In those three wins, the Whitecaps have outscored opponents, 13-0, while being outscored 19-6, in their other 10 postseason contests.

    OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

    LAFC – 63.1%

    Draw – 19.6%

    Vancouver Whitecaps – 17.3%

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    Anthony, however, thought he had put Burnley ahead in the 59th minute when he headed Lucas Pires' delivery to the back post beyond Alex Palmer. 

    But referee Tom Nield felt the Burnley winger had pushed Callum Styles in an attempt to reach the ball, thus disallowing the goal, much to the frustration of Parker. 

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    "There's a little hand but nothing to influence the player too much.

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    "I am really encouraged by that. It's a young team, in a process."

    Anthony also gave his version of events at full-time, echoing the comments made my his manager. 

    "Yeah frustrating, at the time I didn’t think it was a foul. The defender didn’t seem to complain either," Anthony added. 

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    Enzo Maresca was thrilled with the "serious" performance Chelsea put in during their 8-0 drubbing of Armenian minnows Noah in the Europa Conference League.

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    The Blues were six goals to the good by half-time, the biggest advantage by an English side at the break of a major European game since Derby County were winning 9-0 against Finn Harps in the 1976-77 UEFA Cup.

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    "We have good players, and we want them to get minutes. Some of them play in the conference, some in the Premier League, but all of them want to play every game."

    The Stamford Bridge faithful could be heard chanting 'we want 10' during the game, but centre-back Adarabioyo was equally delighted with the clean sheet.

    "I didn't [know fans were chanting 'we want 10']. Didn't manage 10 but a great result," he told TNT Sports.

    "Concentration is key to make sure we have the clean sheet at the end of the game and we managed to do so. I've been thinking I needed a goal soon, so very happy to get one.

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