Where Did It Go Wrong For Manchester City In The 2021 Champions League Final?

Pep Guardiola and Manchester City lost 1-0 to Chelsea in Porto
14:01, 05 Jun 2023

Two thirds of the treble is complete. As Manchester City raised the FA Cup trophy aloft at Wembley, Pep Guardiola’s emotions caught up with him and he couldn't hold back the tears. The win puts City on the brink of the treble, but the biggest trophy of the lot is still to come. 

The Champions League. 

It’s the one they’ve never won, and although they are huge favourites (1/5 with Betfred) to lift the trophy, they’ve been favourites in a final before. Cast your mind back to 2021, and the pandemic-affected Champions League final between Chelsea and Man City. Only 14,000 fans were allowed into Estadio do Dragao in Porto for the all-English final, but City were still expected to win their first European Cup. 

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Thomas Tuchel had only been appointed Chelsea manager in January 2021 and yet he had transformed a side that appeared flaccid under Frank Lampard into world beaters. The Blues had defeated Real Madrid in the semi-final and, crucially, beaten City in both the FA Cup and the Premier League in the last month of the season. 

The Blues also had experience on their side, unlike Man City. This was their third final appearance and they’d already lost one, in 2008, before winning their first European crown in 2012. For City, this was their first shot at the biggest game in club football. And they couldn’t handle it. 

Pep Guardiola must also take some responsibility for the defeat. He chose to start without Fernandinho or Rodri and instead deployed Ilkay Gundogan as a technical holding midfielder. Chelsea, with their box midfield and relentless energy were able to overpower City in the central areas, while Guardiola’s flat back four were pulled all over the pitch by Timo Werner and Kai Havertz. 

Guardiola’s decision to get Raheem Sterling into the team, along with Riyad Mahrez, Kevin de Bruyne, Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden meant that the Citizens had six creative talents - without a defensive minded presence or a cut-throat striker on the pitch. It’s a mistake that Guardiola will not make again this weekend, given Rodri’s importance to the team, while Erling Haaland’s arrival has given them that clinical edge in the final third. 

Chelsea’s goal in 2021, the only goal of the final, came as City’s back four went to press. The centre-backs, John Stones and Ruben Dias, were pulled across the pitch and it left a gaping hole in their back line that Havertz ran through, untracked by Oleksandr Zinchenko. Ederson came out but couldn’t prevent the German from rounding him and tapping into an empty net, in what has been Havertz’s only memorable contribution since joining from Bayer Leverkusen for £75m. 

Things did improve for City once they had brought Fernandinho onto the pitch, but they were still unable to find the goal they needed as they had to come to terms with their first Champions League final heartbreak. But this Man City side has progressed in the last two years, and their system has become almost bulletproof. 

Guardiola found playing with four centre-backs and pushing Stones up the pitch gave his side more stability, and since that move Man City have dominated every opponent. It’s given Rodri support in central areas and allowed Gundogan to push up with Kevin De Bruyne, with Haaland providing a physical focal point. The Norwegian has been in sensational goalscoring form this season and City now, for the first time in Guardiola’s reign, have one of Europe’s best strikers at their disposal. 

They’ve changed, but for the better. The changes Guardiola has made have not only made them more tactically intriguing, but mitigated risk - something that is vital in finals like this. City are likely to line-up with four natural centre-backs and a holding midfielder, making them difficult to break down on the rare occasions when they don’t have the ball. 

Bruno Fernandes’ penalty in the final was the only goal they conceded in the FA Cup season, while they conceded just 33 goals on their way to their third consecutive Premier League title. City will feel the pressure of this huge game, but they have all the tools to navigate their way to the treble. 

Guardiola has evolved since losing the 2021 final. He won’t make the same mistakes this time around. 

*18+ | BeGambleAware

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