Pep Guardiola now shares an unwanted record with his long-time adversary Jose Mourinho following Manchester City’s latest dramatic Champions League exit.
The Premier League champions were almost on the verge of booking their place in a second consecutive UCL final after Riyad Mahrez fired the visitors in front against Real Madrid on Wednesday night. However, a dramatic late double from Rodrygo sent the tie into extra-time, and Karim Benzema sent the La Liga winners through to Paris from the penalty spot.
For Real Madrid, It was an astonishing comeback which no one almost saw it coming with Carlo Ancelotti’s side failing to register a shot on target until Rodrygo’s first goal in the 90th minute. However, it is the latest Champions League turnaround seen at the Bernabeu this season, with Real coming from behind to knock out Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea earlier in the competition.
The Champions League trophy is the one which remains missing in the Guardiola trophy cabinet in club management , and the yesterday collapse at the Bernabeu now puts him level with Mourinho for the most eliminations at the semi-final stage. It was the sixth time the former Barcelona and Bayern boss has stumbled in the last four of the competition, with his last triumph coming in 2011.
Reflecting on the 3-1 defeat at the Bernabeu, two-time Champions League winner Guardiola told BT Sport: “In the first half we did not have [the] game, we were not good enough. But we did not suffer much After we scored the goal we were better. We found our tempo and our game and the players were comfortable.