Atletico Madrid 0-0 Manchester City (agg 0-1): Tetchy stalemate enough to send Guardiola's side to semi-finals

By Sports Desk April 13, 2022

Manchester City sealed their place in the Champions League semi-finals after an ill-tempered 0-0 draw with Atletico Madrid in their second-leg clash on Wednesday.

Kevin De Bruyne's solitary goal in the first leg last week gave Pep Guardiola's side a slender lead to take to the Wanda Metropolitano.

Diego Simeone's men put them under intense pressure in the second half, but City held firm before tempers flared late on and Felipe saw red.

That left the visitors to see out a 1-0 aggregate victory to reach back-to-back Champions League semi-finals for the first time in their history.

The Premier League leaders will now face Real Madrid in the last four after Carlo Ancelotti's charges overcame Chelsea on Tuesday.

The first clear sight of goal for either side came on the half-hour mark when Ilkay Gundogan struck the base of Jan Oblak's right-hand post from eight yards after being teed up by Phil Foden.

City, coming into the game on the back of a thrilling 2-2 draw with title rivals Liverpool, looked the more likely to score throughout the first half, yet they went in at the break having failed to hit the target with any of their eight shots.

The hosts were much improved at the start of the second period and Antoine Griezmann flashed a dipping effort past the post from the edge of the penalty area shortly before the hour. 

There was a melee after Felipe's late challenge on Foden in the closing stages, with both sets of players clashing near the corner flag.

The end result was a second yellow card for the Atleti defender as the home side's Champions League campaign ended on a sour note, with Simeone himself booked in stoppage time after stepping onto the pitch.

 

 

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