Borussia Dortmund 1-2 Man City (2-4 on agg): Riyad Mahrez and Phil Foden goals send English side into last four
- Published
- comments
Mahrez scored his 11th goal of the season to send Man City through to the last four
Manchester City are through to the semi-finals of the Champions League for only the second time after sealing victory over Borussia Dortmund in the last eight courtesy of comeback win in Germany.
Holding a 2-1 lead from the first leg, City found themselves needing to chase the tie when 17-year-old England international Jude Bellingham curled in a superb shot from the edge of the box.
Stung by the concession, the visitors threw everything they could muster at the German side, with Kevin de Bruyne smashing an effort off the bar before Riyad Mahrez saw a shot blocked on the line by the brilliant Bellingham.
The crucial breakthrough for City came early in the second half as Emre Can was penalised for handling in the box and Mahrez stepped up to fire his side ahead again in the tie.
Phil Foden sealed it, adding to the late goal he scored at the Etihad to give his side their first-leg lead with a fierce drive that found the Dortmund goal via the post.
City will face Paris St-Germain in the semi-finals, with the French side having eliminated holders Bayern Munich on Tuesday.
It is the first time City have reached the semis under current boss Pep Guardiola, who twice won the competition during his time as manager of Barcelona.
Their previous appearance in the last four came in 2015-16, when they were knocked out by Real Madrid in Manuel Pellegrini's final season in charge.
The defeat likely ends Dortmund's hopes of playing in next season's Champions League, with them fifth in the Bundesliga, seven points behind fourth-placed Eintracht Frankfurt.
A big hurdle cleared by Guardiola's City
Guardiola on the importance of reaching last four for Man City
With record-breaking Premier League titles and domestic cups aplenty to their name, City have conquered the English game under Guardiola. Another league crown is incoming and could well be garnished by a couple of domestic cups.
But European glory continues to elude them.
In the build-up to Wednesday's second leg, the Spanish manager hinted at the Champions League aspirations that partly motivated his appointment, admitting that he will be seen as a failure if he fails to deliver the prize to the Etihad during his time at the club.
Wednesday's result represents a pivotal moment in achieving that, with the psychological hurdle of getting past the quarter-finals cleared.
The manner of their second-leg win - devoid of panic, even after falling behind, and trusting in a process that ultimately saw them sweep aside a tricky opponent - puts them in even greater stead.
They may not be fielding a recognised striker in their biggest games at the moment, but in De Bruyne, Foden, Mahrez and Bernardo Silva they have a front four with the intelligence, skill and movement to pick apart any side on the continent.
Foden added once again to his rapidly growing reputation, but the real standout was De Bruyne, who largely ran the show and was denied one of the great Champions League goals when Marwin Hitz tipped aside his low shot after the Belgian had weaved his way past a series of challenges and into the box.
Kylian Mbappe, Neymar, Mauricio Pochettino and co await in a potentially stellar last-four tie.
Bellingham shines in defeat
Bellingham has two England caps to his name
Dortmund spokespeople have spent much of this season refuting speculation linking forwards Erling Braut Haaland and Jadon Sancho with moves away from the club.
The supremely talented pair will inevitably attract suitors in the summer, especially with Champions League football next season now pretty much out of reach for the German side.
However, on the evidence of this match Bellingham could be the real ace in Dortmund's hand.
His superb first-half finish was merely the headline of a brilliant all-round display that saw him cover all areas of the pitch, win tackles, find team-mates and do all in his power to avoid elimination.
Not content with putting the ball in the net at one end, he proved equally adept at preventing goals going in at the other, positioning himself well to block Mahrez's shot from close range to preserve the lead.
He completely outshone Haaland, who put himself about but had only a wayward shot late in the game to show for his efforts.
Gareth Southgate is not short of midfield options for his England side, but Bellingham's display on the biggest of club stages must surely strengthen his claim to a spot in the squad for this summer's European Championships.
Dortmund are likely to be set for a busy summer of their own unless they can somehow pull of a miracle finish to their domestic season.
English sides starting to reassert themselves in Europe
After both Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig made the Champions League semi-finals last season, no German side has reached the final four this term. Indeed, two English sides (Chelsea & Man City) will appear in the semi-finals for the second time in the last three campaigns (Liverpool & Spurs in 2018-19).
City boss Pep Guardiola has reached his eighth Champions League semi-final, now the joint-most in the history of the competition among all managers, alongside Jose Mourinho.
Sides from England have eliminated sides from Germany in 12 Champions League knockout ties (including finals), the same number German sides have managed over English clubs. This is the first example at the quarter-final stage (or later) since Chelsea overcame Bayern Munich during the 2011-12 final.
Dortmund have now scored in each of their last 40 matches across all competitions (82 goals), with only their German counterparts Bayern Munich (65) on a longer scoring run of all sides within the top five European leagues.
Riyad Mahrez's equaliser was his first Champions League goal since September 2019, ending a run of 14 matches without one. Manchester City's Algerian winger has netted each of his three penalties in the competition.
Aged 17 years and 289 days, Dortmund's Jude Bellingham became only the second player to reach 10 Champions League appearances before turning 18, after Youri Tielemans in 2014; the previous youngest English player to reach 10 games was Theo Walcott (18y 341d in 2008).
Dortmund's Bellingham became only the third 17-year-old to score a Champions League knockout stage goal (alongside Bojan and Jamal Musiala), while he is only the second English player to score such a goal for a non-English team after Steve McManaman for Real Madrid (1999-00 final & 2001-02 semi-final).
Phil Foden is only the second player younger than 21 years old to score in both legs of a Champions League quarter-final tie (or later), after Kylian Mbappe in 2016-17 for Monaco, also against Borussia Dortmund, who was 18.
Snowfall box set: Hard-hitting drama on the epidemic that hit 1980s Los Angeles
The 'voice of golf' Peter Alliss: Revealing the charismatic man behind the microphone
