City make the most of five subs
Manchester City could have got through with a 0-0 draw but Riyad Mahrez's goal should have made for a much less nervous final 15 minutes as they restored their two-goal advantage. Mahrez had started but substitutes Oleksandr Zinchenko and Ilkay Gundogan were heavily involved in the build-up to find Bernardo Silva in the sort of space that had not been there all game.
Whether it was the individuals themselves or just the change that disrupted Real, the Liga champions looked to have paid for that lapse in concentration. After the initial changes, Jack Grealish then went agonisingly close not once but twice to adding to the lead in what would have killed Real off before their incredible comeback.
A perfect use of the five substitution rule that has only just been deemed palatable in England will be no consolation to Pep Guardiola as he reflects on another painful Champions League exit, but shows what can be done.
Also read: Man City player ratings vs Real Madrid
But lose their heads at the last
This wasn't a dominant performance from City as the first leg was, and for considerable periods of the game they were forced to dig in as Real piled on the pressure. The visitors could only muster around 30 per cent of possession in the opening 15 minutes, and could not sustain long periods of keeping the ball themselves.
However, their use of tempo in the match was spot on up until the 90th minute. When they were under the cosh they slowed it down as much as possible to take the sting out of the Real momentum - Ederson was warned as early as the 12th minute for taking too long over his goal-kicks. And when they needed to, they pressed hard and got their reward with the Mahrez goal.
After 89 minutes of maturity, City threw it all away in ten crazy minutes. Not only did they allow Real to get back in the game, but they then conceded needlessly in injury time before a rash Ruben Dias challenge at the beginning of extra time completed the ridiculous fall from ecstasy to agony. They composed themselves afterwards, but by then it was too late.
Missed chances end up costing City
City had chances at 1-0 up in Madrid to score a second, with Grealish seeing a shot cleared off the line before Thibaut Courtois produced an excellent save to deny him moments later. They also had opportunities after falling behind, with Phil Foden going close from a header.
Reflecting on the tie overall, the Blues should have scored more than four at the Etihad. They didn't, and all of those missed chances proved the main reasons why they are not heading to Paris and Real Madrid are.
Pressure on the league
For all Guardiola may say otherwise, he knows that a team like City has their success measured in silverware, and they can now only win one trophy this season. It is a big one in the Premier League, the one that many in the squad want to win the most, but it is one all the same in a year when Liverpool could win three even if they are pipped to the league title.
Would a fourth Premier League title in five years make it a successful season for City? And do nine months of excellence nearly every week crumble if they are not able to get over the line in that?
They are questions that nobody was thinking as injury time approached at the Bernabeu, but will linger until the end of the season now.
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