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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Sport
Andy Hampson

Rodri insists it is job not done yet for Manchester City in Bayern Munich tie

PA Wire

Rodri insisted the job was not done after Manchester City took a huge stride towards the Champions League semi-finals with a convincing win over Bayern Munich.

City produced one of their greatest European performances as they overcame the six-time champions 3-0 in the first leg of their quarter-final tie at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday.

Rodri himself set up victory with a stunning first-half strike before Bernardo Silva added a powerful header and Erling Haaland – almost inevitably – hit his 45th goal of a remarkable season.

City will now expect to secure their place in the last four for a third successive season in next week’s second leg but Rodri is taking nothing for granted.

The Spanish midfielder said: “I am very happy for the performance. It was a very special one.

“I want to congratulate the team because of the effort, and because of the fact we played one of the best teams in Europe.

“But this is the Champions League and we know who we are facing. We know how demanding it is going to be. We still have to try to win the game because it is not done.”

The first half was evenly contested but Rodri gave his side the edge when he curled home a left-foot shot from outside the area in the 27th minute.

“It was very special for me because it was my first goal in the Champions League,” said the 26-year-old. “I think it gave us the confidence to believe and keep going. I have to shoot more!”

Bayern responded with former City winger Leroy Sane twice threatening but City took a firm grip when Haaland broke free from a Jack Grealish backheel and crossed for Silva to double the lead on 70 minutes.

Haaland then did what he does best six minutes later when he turned in from close range after John Stones headed a cross back across the face of goal.

The Norwegian’s strike established a new record for the most club goals scored by a Premier League player in a single season, passing the previous best of 44 set jointly by Mohamed Salah and Ruud Van Nistelrooy.

“Erling is an incredible weapon,” Rodri said. “He is always in the area and he made an incredible assist also. He understood the space to give the second goal to Bernardo.

“But I don’t want to talk about individuals. I want to speak about the team. It was a collective win.

“We struggled at times because they are good also but I think we stood up well in the game. We punished them and took opportunities.

“We could have scored more goals but in the end it was a great result.”

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