- Manchester City and Real Madrid's only previous competitive encounter was in the 2012-13 Champions League group stages. The Merengues won 3-2 at the Bernabeu before a 1-1 draw at Etihad Stadium.
- For the sixth time in a row, Real Madrid will play the first-leg of a Champions League knockout tie away from home.
- Manchester City have reached the semi-finals of the Champions League for the first time in their history. They have only won one of their four home games in the knockout stages, against PSG in this season's quarter-finals (D1 L2).
- Manchester City have only kept one clean sheet in their 10 Champions League games against Spanish opposition - a 3-0 away win against Villarreal in November 2011.
- Manchester City are the only team left in the semi-finals who have averaged under 50% possession in the Champions League this season (48.6%).
- Real Madrid have reached the semi-finals of the Champions League in each of the past six seasons, the longest current run. It is also their 27th appearance in the final four of the Champions League or European Cup, more than any other team.
And, just for the record, Ronaldo has 12 more goals than Lionel Messi in Europe this season.
It equates to a quite phenomenal ratio of a goal every 56.2 minutes for the Portuguese star in the Champions League this seasonSF First Leg Manchester City Vs Real Madrid - The Match ended in a Goalless Draw
The news Ronaldo's thigh muscle was deemed too tight for him to play was clearly a massive boost for City before their first Champions League semi-final.
Without their 47-goal top scorer, a Real side that had scored 133 goals in their previous 46 games this season seemed reluctant to commit men forward and struggled to create chances.
Gareth Bale, playing his first game in England since his £85m move to Real from Spurs in 2013, was unable to provide the spark in Ronaldo's absence.
Joe Hart kept Manchester City's hopes of reaching their first Champions League final alive with two brilliant late saves that ensured their semi-final first leg with Real Madrid finished goalless.
With star striker Cristiano Ronaldo missing because of a thigh injury, a cautious Real side offered little goal threat until the closing stages.
But in the last 20 minutes, Jese headed against the bar for the Spanish side before Hart brilliantly denied Casemiro and Pepe from corners.
Hart showed great reactions to keep out Casemiro's header with his foot but his block to deny Pepe, who was unmarked and five yards from goal, is the standout reason City will travel to Spain next week with a precious clean sheet.
The closest City came to a goal of their own was when Keylor Navas tipped over Kevin de Bruyne's dipping free-kick in stoppage time.
- The first goal attempt of the game - by City defender Nicolas Otamendi - came after 27 minutes, the latest in any Champions League game this season.
- Real Madrid were involved in only their ninth goalless draw in their 223rd Champions League game.
- They have won just 43% of their Champions League games without Ronaldo since 2009-10 (3/7), and 71% with him.
- This was just the fourth Champions League game this season without a first-half shot on target.
- City have managed only three shots on target in total their past three Champions League home games (one in each).
- Aguero has now gone 432 minutes without having a shot on target in the Champions League.
- De Bruyne completed just 62.8% of his passes, the lowest figure for any outfield player.
No comments:
Post a Comment