A night of Champions League action lies ahead as Real Madrid face one of the biggest games of the season at Stamford Bridge. Real Madrid have travelled to London to face their opponents, Chelsea in the UCL semi-final second-leg clash.
In the first leg, Chelsea made a thrilling start and were in front inside 15 minutes through Christian Pulišić. However, Karim Benzema scored a brilliant equalizer before the half-hour to keep the tie level heading into the return match. The 1-1 first-leg result leaves everything to play for. However, Madrid is fully focused on progressing to the final.
In the online pre-match press conference, Zinedine Zidane said “we’ve got this far thanks to our hard work and believing in what we do”. Toni Kroos also said that “we’re in with a chance of making the final and we’ll give our all.” Captain Sergio Ramos, Ferland Mendy and Fede Valverde all return to the madridista squad for tonight’s showdown. Should the madridistas progress, Manchester City will be opponents in the Istanbul showpiece.
Meanwhile, a goalless draw against Madrid tonight would be enough for Chelsea to advance to the Champions League final for the first time in nine years. Thomas Tuchel has explained why his team must not play for that result and should do everything to try and win the second leg outright.
“The challenge is to forget the first result and start at 0-0. We will prepare to win the match, nothing else. We have no other way to prepare matches. I only need to encourage my team to go out and try and win it.”
“We want to win games. This club is about winning, this game is about winning, this competition is about winning.”
Thomas Tuchel, Chelsea’s Manager
Cityzens make history as they cruise to First UCL Final
Riyad Mahrez scored twice as Man City beat Paris Saint-Germain 2-0 to claim a 4-1 aggregate win and reach the UCL final for the first time. Ruben Dias led a defensive masterclass and Phil Foden produced a coming-of-age display.
PSG entered the game needing at least two goals to have any chance. However, City’s back four put their body on the line time and time again, blocking shot after shot. This left Mauricio Pochettino’s team frustrated at yet another European failure. Whilst Stones and Zinchenko were celebrating blocks like goals, Foden was charging fearlessly through the midfield. His assist for Mahrez’s second goal was his most notable contribution. This makes him the first Manchester City player to reach double figures for goals and assists in all competitions this season.
City’s win last night means they have won their last seven Champions League matches. This is the longest ever winning run by an English team in European Cup/Champions League history. The Cityzens are also the first English side to win 11 games in a single European Cup/Champions League campaign.
Manchester City have become the ninth English side to reach the final of Europe’s top club competition with their semi-final victory over Paris. They will face either Chelsea or Real Madrid in this season’s UEFA Champions League final. They will also be the 42nd side to feature in a European Cup final.
Pep Guardiola hailed his “incredible” players after they produced a superb performance to reach their first UCL final. Speaking in his post-match press conference, Guardiola was full of praise for the achievements of his players in what has been an extremely tough season.
“We beat a team that knocked out Barcelona and Bayern Munich.”
“We struggled early on but were much better in the second half. This is an incredible, huge victory for us. What the players have done this season is incredible in the toughest year for everyone. Being so close to winning the Premier League and in the final of the Champions League is so good.”
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