Bernardo Silva’s Fear Comes True & Pep Guardiola’s Late Move Proves Costly As Real Madrid Beat Manchester City On Penalties

Published 04/17/2024, 6:18 PM EDT

Real Madrid have once again turned their magic on in the UEFA Champions League. They came back to knock Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City out in the second leg of the quarterfinals. Despite dominating the whole game, the Sky Blues succumbed to two errors by their players in a thrilling penalty shootout. And now it seems like Bernardo Silva’s recent nightmare came true after Pep Guardiola’s ultimate move went wrong as Lunin saved Mateo Kovacic’s penalty.

The Portuguese midfielder recently expressed his fear that despite City’s spectacular achievements in the last season, they could be out of contention for any major competition soon. And the dreaded fear is now a reality. Silva earlier said, “But, in one week, we could be out of all the competitions, so we are fighting and we are going to do everything in our power to get a step closer to that goal,” anticipating endless possibilities including an undesirable result.

It was Manchester City that took control of the game despite Real Madrid forward Rodrygo putting the guests ahead in the twelfth minute. Kevin De Bruyne’s 76th-minute equalizer may have boosted Pep Guardiola’s confidence, but it was Los Blancos’ back wall that stood firm until extra time ended and took the game to penalties.

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Nonetheless, City was at an advantage immediately when shootouts started after Luka Modric’s shot was saved with ease by Ederson. But as it turned out, City handed over the game to Carlo Ancelotti’s men starting with Silva’s tired and low-power penalty landing straight into the hands of Lunin. Subsequently, Kovacic, who was brought in place of Kevin De Bruyne by Pep, missed his penalty helping Real Madrid reach their 33rd Champions League semifinal. However, Pep Guardiola is ready to move on leaving the disappointment behind.

Pep Guardiola doesn’t regret the loss despite giving it away

After the match, Pep Guardiola stated that the team could have done better in converting their chances. Citing that only the score matters, and not the dominance on the pitch, Guardiola said, “I would have preferred to have won but congratulations to Real Madrid. We did everything so I have absolutely no regret about anything we have done,” understanding the daunting task of cracking the 14-time champions’ defense.

Moreover, the contest was one of the most physically challenging matches soccer fans could see. Even physically strong players like Jude Bellingham and Manchester City defender Manuel Akanji were experiencing fatigue during extra time. However, despite their exertion from the UCL, the current champions are still leading the race for the Premier League. Hence, Silva’s fear has only come partially true, and he hopes to avoid it completely by sealing the league title.

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Ruthu is a Soccer Writer at EssentiallySports. Growing up in a sporting background, he found a passion for soccer through the remarkable 2002 World Cup-winning Brazilian team. Ruthu brings an out-of-the-box perspective with writing, as he possesses the ability to view the game from different critical angles, a skill that sets apart a sports journalist.

Edited by:

Sreeda U M

Bernardo Silva’s Fear Comes True & Pep Guardiola’s Late Move Proves Costly As Real Madrid Beat Manchester City On Penalties

Pep Guardiola doesn’t regret the loss despite giving it away

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