MAN CITY 1, LIVERPOOL 2
(Liverpool won 5-1 on aggregate)
AFTER breezing through the 2017/18 campaign for more than eight months, Manchester City and Pep Guardiola have suddenly been found lacking at the business end of the season.
Three defeats in a disastrous seven days – twice to Liverpool in the quarter finals of the Champions League and also in the Manchester derby – have exposed chinks in the armour of Guardiola who had until now done little wrong.
But with the pressure building, City crumbled as they looked far from the invincibles they had become.
Perhaps expectations had become too great as the bookmakers at one stage had City favourites to win the Champions League.
May be it might have been a different story had Leroy Sane not had a goal wrongly ruled out just before half time that would have made it 2-0 at the interval.
City will still finish the season with two pieces of silverware, the Premier League and Carabao Cup, but the season had promised even more.
City manager Pep Guardiola, sent off at half time for protesting about the disallowed goal, said: “I didn’t insult him (Spanish referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz), and just said it was a goal.
“(Mohamed) Salah’s first goal at Anfield was offside and these type of games things like that have a big impact and influence.
“When teams are so equal, the impact is so big. It is what it is and congratulations to them. They are a top, top team with a top manager and they deserved to go through.”
Guardiola had history against Lahoz who awarded two penalties for Napoli against City in the Champions League and denied them a spot kick against Monaco.
City manager, who added the Premier League title had always been the priority, said: “We would have liked to win the derby and go through to the semi finals. We have to reflect and do better next season.
“We have to analyse what we have done in 10 months. It is quite good.”
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, who reiterated an earlier claim that City are the best team in the world at the moment, said: “We scored five goals against City in two games and conceded only one – not many other teams do that – and I think we deserved to go through.
“It will be difficult in the semis, 100-per-cent. We are in them and should enjoy the moment. It has been awhile since Liverpool have been in the semis, and also for me.”
City went into the return 3-0 behind and in need of a miracle. And when Gabriel Jesus scored for them in 1min 56sec, it looked as though it might happen.
It was Liverpool whose nerve held as they killed off City with second-half goals from Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino. Both netted their eight Champions League goals of the campaign, an European club record for Liverpool.
Those strikes made it 33 and still counting in the Champions League, another record as was Liverpool’s three victories against City this season, something no other team has ever achieved in Guardiola’s managerial career.
It is a matter of when and not if City will land the title but, after three losses in a row, Saturday’s league game against Tottenham at Wembley is the last thing they needed after this week to forget.
City made four changes from the derby defeat as captain Vincent Kompany, Danilo, Ilkay Gundogan and Fabien Delph lost out.
There were recalls for Kyle Walker and Aymeric Laporte in defence, Kevin De Bruyne and Jesus while top scorer Sergio Aguero, only just back from an injury lay-off was against on the bench.
Liverpool made one change from the side that beat City 3-0 in the first leg at Anfield as Georginio Wijnaldum replaced suspended captain Jordan Henderson.
City certainly had an adventurous line up, a 3-1-4-2 system.
And they got off to the best possible start taking the lead after 1min 56sec, though Liverpool were incensed claiming Virgil Van Dijk was fouled in the build up.
Fernandino played the ball forward and Raheem Sterling square a pass for Jesus to sweep home.
It was a sequel to City completely dominating the opening period, but unable to add to their lead as Liverpool defended resolutely, if not fortuitously at times.
City claimed two penalties in quick succession for a handball by James Milner and then Andy Robertson manhandling Sterling in the box.
Then in the dying minutes of the half, Bernardo Silva’s shot deflected off the head of Dejan Lovren before striking the upright and Leroy Sane had a goal wrongly ruled out for offside when it had deflected off Milner into his path.
But on the stroke of half time, Liverpool almost snatched an unlikely equaliser on the break.
Salah released Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain who rounded keeper Ederson Moraes but blazed over from the tightest of angles.
There was controversy at the end of the half when Guardiola was sent off.
Ferdandinho remonstrated with Lahoz over Sane’s disallowed goal.
Guardiola intervened to pull Fernandinho away but he, too, was gesticulating wildly to the match official and it later emerged he had been dismissed.
The second half saw Fernandinho dropping into defence with De Bruyne taking his midfield anchor role.
With Guardiola sat in the stand, Liverpool levelled in the 56th minute leaving City needing to score five.
Oxlade-Chamberlain released Sadio Mane who burst through only for Ederson to save at his feet. The ball ran free for Salah to slot home his 39th goal of a remarkable debut season for the club.
City brought on Aguero for David Silva midway through the half, their last throw of the dice. And Gundogan soon followed as he replaced Bernardo Silva.
And it got worse for City when Firmino gave Liverpool a 77th minute lead.
Nicolas Otamendi, in the right-back position, slipped and was dispossessed by Firmino who cut in and found the net off the far upright.
City had the ball in the net for a second time but Gundogan had strayed offside as Sane square a pass into his path. It was academic, though, as Liverpool had long secured their passage to the semi-finals.