Pep Guardiola, the Manchester City manager, declared he had “no regrets” following his team’s heart-wrenching 4-3 defeat to Real Madrid by way of a penalty shoot-out, dashing their hopes of a double-treble. On the same evening, Arsenal bid farewell to the Champions League courtesy of a 1-0 downfall against Bayern Munich, culminating in a 3-2 defeat on aggregate.
The quarter-final leg two at Etihad Stadium saw City bounce back with Kevin De Bruyne’s match-leveling goal in the 76th minute, nullifying Rodrygo’s early brace. Although City had supremacy in terms of ball possession, Real Madrid stood their ground up to the end of extra time and ultimately triumphed during the penalty shoot-out.
City’s initial spot kick got off to a good start with Julian Álvarez, followed by Luka Modric’s miss for the visitors. Though what could have been a defining moment was quickly lost when Bernardo Silva and Mateo Kovacic couldn’t capitalise on City’s subsequent penalties. All remaining penalties found their mark. Antonio Rüdiger’s successful shot for the 14-time champions sealed the deal.
Guardiola commended Real Madrid, stating City should’ve bested them ahead of a shoot-out scenario. “Football is about scoring goals and they outperformed us in the penalty shoot-out. They progress to the semi-finals, and we do not. I am deeply grateful to my players,” said the manager. De Bruyne and Erling Haaland were withdrawn before the shoot-out at their request, as they were unable to play further, Guardiola disclosed.
Meanwhile, Arsenal met their end in the Champions League as a result of a goal by Joshua Kimmich in the 63rd minute at the Allianz Arena. A visibly upset Mikel Arteta, the Arsenal manager, admitted being at a loss for words to encourage his dejected players and emphasised the thin line between victory and defeat throughout the tie.
“Guardiola acknowledged that they previously have had superior performances than what was seen recently. He admitted his team allowed two goals during the initial leg, bestowing a significant upper hand upon their opponents. An error in defence resulted in another goal conceded, making the situation increasingly challenging. The team explored multiple strategies to solve the problem, however, it remained difficult. Guardiola expressed that the time is right to stand by the team’s side and offer them support as they are the ones driving the journey.
HIS upcoming challenge is to motivate his team for the forthcoming FA Cup semi-finals against Chelsea on Saturday. In the meantime, Arsenal, trailing by two points in the Premier league, has an away game against Wolves on the same day. Guardiola shared his anticipation about evaluating the conditions of his players the following day. Arteta, on the other hand, found delight in their challenging road ahead. With six games left and a packed schedule, he remained optimistic, urging his team to return with the same motivation they demonstrated in their recent game, with hopes to defeat Wolves on Thursday.”