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Manchester City are just a couple of steps away from turning their Billion-pound dream into a reality. The Citizens have spent heavily in the pursuit of Champions League glory and could confirm their place in the final of the competition with a win over Paris Saint Germain on Tuesday.
When Paris Saint Germain took the lead in the Champions League semi-final first leg, it seemed to the footballing world that Manchester City’s curse was set to continue. The Citizens have failed to progress to the final of the tournament despite spending a huge amount of money on their squad. Furthermore, they have only managed to reach the semi-final stage of the competition once before.
However, goals from Kevin De Bruyne and Riyad Mahrez turned the game around as City ended up winning the match. Pep Guardiola’s side is now just 90 minutes away from the final and potentially a further 90 away from lifting the cup. However, their job is not done yet. The Parisians are hungry for silverware themselves after coming extremely close to lifting the converted golden chalice last season. Their hopes of doing so this time around have taken a hit, but they are not out of the running yet.
Nonetheless, Manchester City do have the advantage in the tie in terms of the lead and the away goals. As such, the Parisians will have to be at their very best if they are to make it to the final of the competition. They need to score at least twice against City. Failure to do so would eliminate them from the tournament.
Key Players
Kevin De Bruyne certainly did not mean to score from where he did against PSG, but he will be glad that it happened anyway. Moreover, it was nothing less than he deserved after a fantastic performance in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final. All eyes will be on the Belgian midfielder again on Tuesday night, as he leads the charge to take Manchester City through to their first UCL Final.
Already highly regarded in his native land, the whole of Europe is now seeing what the fuss is around Phil Foden. Many consider the youngster to be on par, or at least close to, with the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland. It is unquestionable that he has the talent to take him to the very top, and he has started putting in performances to match it too. His two goals against Dortmund in the previous round were a sight to behold.
Kylian Mbappe is considered to be the gold standard when it comes to talented youngsters. It has been five years since the Frenchman broke onto the scene. He has gone from strength to strength since, even winning a World Cup in the process. The forward is a menace to the opposition defenders. His pace and finishing are his two most potent weapons. PSG will hope to rely on them when they face City midweek.
Neymar did not join PSG just because they were offering him a monumental wage, he also did so because he wanted to be the main man at a club. Barcelona could not offer him that. PSG, on the other hand, did not hesitate. The Brazilian now has the chance to lead his team to glory after missing out on it by a whisker last season. He will need to put in a talismanic performance if he hopes to reach the final for a second year running.
Prediction
Both Manchester City and Paris Saint Germain have worked endlessly towards one goal in the past decade – winning the UEFA Champions League. Both teams are now just a few steps from their goal. Unfortunately for one of them, their journey will end at the penultimate stage of the tournament.
Manchester City have the advantage ahead of the second leg and a massive one too. Not only did the Citizens win the first leg, but they also scored two away goals – an invaluable currency in the Champions League business. Due to those goals, the City find themselves in the driving seat for the match ahead.
However, PSG have the personnel to overturn the deficit. The attacking trident of Kylian Mbappe, Neymar, and Angel Di Maria is among the best in the world and can rip apart any defence to shreds. One can’t help but wonder if the Parisians have left themselves with too much to do in the second leg. Defeating City won’t be enough. They will have to score a minimum of two goals. The tide is with the English side ahead of the match, and they should be the ones progressing to the final from this position.
