(Istanbul) Manchester City have completed their mission after billions of dollars in investment and many difficult times.
The royally-funded English club from Abu Dhabi secured a maiden Champions League title with a 1-0 victory over Inter Milan on Saturday at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium.
Rodri netted the game’s only goal in the 68th minute, earning his club a hat-trick after winning the Premier League and FA Cup.
“Today we made history,” Manchester City captain Ilkay Gundogan said. We knew everyone was talking about the hat-trick. The pressure was there, but this team was built to overcome the pressure. »
While this is a first continental crown for Man City, it is the third time manager Pep Guardiola has lifted the trophy.
“It was written in the sky. This title belonged to us,” said Guardiola, who had tears in his eyes during the celebrations with the players on the pitch. His last title dates back to 2011, with FC Barcelona.
This is Guardiola’s 30th major title as a coach and a second hat-trick, after that of 2009 with Barça. City become only the second English club to accomplish the feat, after Manchester United in 1999.
City prevailed despite losing star midfielder Kevin De Bruyne in the first half to injury. He also ignored a low-key game from star striker Erling Haaland.
This victory finally allows the team to complete its record by achieving European supremacy, 15 years after the royal family of Abu Dhabi transformed it into the richest team in the world.
Owner Sheik Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan witnessed the triumph in person. It was only the second time since he bought the club in 2008 that he was there for a game.
Inter were the underdog heading into the encounter, but they defied their rival until the final whistle. Romelu Lukaku got a chance to tie the game late in the game, but his header deflection went straight for goalkeeper Ederson.
The winning goal was scored when Rodri recovered a ball after a maneuver from Bernardo Silva. His shot snuck through traffic in the penalty area.
The relief was evident as he ran towards the City supporters and slid to his knees in celebration.
Inter almost gave the cue a few minutes later, but Federico Dimarco hit the crossbar with a close-range strike.
He wanted to take advantage of the return, but the ball hit his teammate Lukaku.
“We didn’t deserve to lose,” said Inter Milan head coach Simone Inzaghi. We were up against a great team, but we played in a big final.
“Manchester City deserved to win the Champions League because of what this team has achieved over the past few years. But tonight, he faced a very good team who managed to annoy him. »
City managed to come out on top even though they weren’t able to deliver their best performance. He was a shadow of the team that crushed Bayern Munich and Real Madrid on their way to the final.
Still, Gundogan was the one to lift the trophy while Queen’s We are the Champions played in the stadium.
“One of the reasons this club became what it is today is those people in Abu Dhabi, Scheik Mansour, who invested in this club,” Guardiola said. Without that, we are not here today. They are the most important people… Their support for me has been unconditional, even in defeats. At any other club, I would have been fired. »
Guardiola and City instead conquered Europe. Finally !
