Pep Guardiola admitted he made a risk by starting Kyle Walker against Real Madrid in their Champions League tie - but it ended in tears.
Manchester City will not get the chance to lift the one trophy they have never won in Europe after falling at the semi-finals in the most dramatic of circumstances. They were leading 5-3 on aggregate in the 89th minute before it all changed.
Carlo Ancelotti made some inspired substitutions but there might not be a better one in history than that of Rodrygo. The Brazilian came on to score two times within seconds to send the match to extra-time - netting both in injury time.
And there are no prizes for guessing the man to grab the winner when Karim Benzema rolled his penalty with ice in his veins past Ederson. City will be banging their heads against the wall having blown the chance to reach the final and take on Liverpool.
Riyad Mahrez had scored in the 75th minute to put them two goals ahead on aggregate but the loss of Kyle Walker was unmistakably a crucial moment in the match. There were doubts that the right-back would start after barely recovering from injury.
The 31-year-old had kept Vinicius Jr quiet throughout the contest but his exit left gaping holes in City's defence. Guardiola admitted that it was a risk and it turned out to be his downfall.
When asked about Walker's situation before the match, Guardiola admitted: "There are moments of the season you have to risk, this is one of them."
And now the Spaniard will go another season without lifting the Champions League trophy - ultimately, what he has been brought to City to do. The closest he came was last year but Chelsea defeated them through Kai Havertz.
Guardiola is not leaving the Etihad anytime soon so the planning will start again this summer while a prospective transfer for Erling Haaland will surely make them favourites. But their European hoodoo is quickly becoming a hurdle that is enlarging by the year.
On BT Sport, Joleon Lescott admitted that City might have been the creators of their own downfall after loosening their grip on the match - despite going a goal up through Mahrez. He said: "[Real Madrid] knew at the start of this game that they were going to win this football.
"Even when it was 1-0, the City fans went a little bit quiet, as soon as they did that, they lifted their performance. The place erupted as soon as they scored their first goal. You saw everyone’s belief just lift, both fans and the players, they nearly blew the roof off this stadium."
