© Reuters. Football – UEFA Champions League Final – Manchester City v Inter Milan – Ataturk Olympic Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey – June 10, 2023 Manchester City’s Kyle Walker, Rico Lewis and Phil Foden celebrate after winning the Champions League REUTERS/Dilara Senka
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Written by Martin Hermann
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Manchester City finally extended their dominance domestically across the continent as they beat Inter Milan 1-0 to win the Champions League for the first time and complete a rare hat-trick on a frayed nerves Saturday night.
But pre-match talk of a picnic on Europe’s Most Valuable Player crown proved elusive, and Rodri needed a goal after 68 minutes to break Inter’s resistance.
Even then, City’s massed ranks were in their hands as Inter threatened to drag a sloppy final into extra time with goalkeeper Ederson making two late saves.
Jubilation erupted at the final whistle as City players charged towards their fans at the Ataturk Stadium.
“You have to be lucky,” said City manager Pep Guardiola. “It was written in the stars. He belongs to us.” “With such competition, the trilogy is very tough.”
Not only did City win their first European trophy since winning the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1970, they also became only the second English team to win the treble of Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League, matching Manchester United’s sweep in 1999 when City were in the Third Division.
Inter, seeking to lift the trophy for the fourth time, stifled Guardiola’s side with a brilliant first-half match plan as City’s Kevin De Bruyne exited with an injury.
City may have experienced a terrible sense of déjà vu as key playmaker De Bruyne also failed to finish in the final two years ago when City fell short against Chelsea.
Even Norwegian goal machine Erling Haaland found himself in shackles, but in the end Spanish midfielder Rodri, making his 52nd start of the season, came to the rescue.
Live the dream
Rodri told BT Sport as Guardiola embraced his players and City fans sang the name of Sheikh Mansour, whose takeover of the club in 2008 turned City into back-to-back winners.
“It wasn’t easy. What a team we’ve faced, the way they defend and counterattack. Finals are like this. Emotions and nerves are there. We competed like animals.”
City have now won 17 titles since taking over in 2008, although a cloud looms with the club facing 100 charges over alleged breaches of the Premier League’s financial regulations dating back to 2009.
On Saturday by the Bosphorus, it was the last thing the jubilant City fans cared about as they serenaded their side with club anthem Blue Moon, and a set of hits by Oasis, of which both brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher were huge fans.
Having finally led City to the European Holy Cup after some near misses, Guardiola became the first manager to achieve a brace in European football, having achieved the equivalent in Spain with Barcelona in 2009.
He has delivered 12 major trophies for City since 2016, and with the Champions League jinx broken, any sense of inferiority they might have felt to founding European kings like Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Liverpool has faded.
“We want more,” Rodri warned.
Hand over the players
Guardiola’s side upset their lines at Porto two years ago against Chelsea. This time he introduced Guardiola and his players, although it will never be clear.
Simone Inzaghi’s side disrupted City’s pace in the first half with three goals from Matteo Darmian, Francesco Acerbi and Alessandro Bastoni brilliantly behind the tireless midfield keeper.
Haaland hit two attempts, the second a fine save by Andre Onana, but Guardiola looked worried on the touchline – and even more so when De Bruyne was forced off in the 36th minute.
City were uncharacteristically skittish after the break with misguided passes, Manuel Akanji playing in Lautaro Martinez who selfishly failed to pick up substitute Romelu Lukaku.
The Inter fans grew louder while City were virtually silent at the other end, but that all changed when Bernardo Silva found some space in the blue-black wall and Rodri dispatched his scaling back.
To their credit, Inter responded immediately and came agonizingly close to equalizing when Federico Dimarco’s header hit the crossbar by beating Ederson, then watched as the follow-up header hit Lukaku, who replaced Edin Dzeko.
Lukaku came close to the end when Ederson parried his point-to-point header after Francesco Acerbe had been parried again. It was city night.