This victory was as smooth and composed as Manchester City’s transition into Friday’s quarter-final draw. Leading 3-1 into the second leg, Pep Guardiola sent in an XI that rested the front-line gunners of Kevin De Bruyne, Phil Foden, John Stones, Bernardo Silva, Nathan Aké and Kyle Walker ahead of a tough match against Liverpool at the weekend. and Copenhagen were still 3-1 down at half-time, 6-2 on aggregate.
Manuel Akanji, Julián Álvarez and Erling Haaland were City’s goalscorers; Mohamed Elyounoussi scored Copenhagen’s consolation as the second half became an exercise in maintaining Guardiola’s form and concentration.
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Whichever team City are paired with in Nyon, they will cause zero fear in the ranks or in Guardiola whose top unit will have a very remarkable treble defense.
“We are a team that believes we can do this,” Guardiola said. “Listen, we are competing with Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. We don’t know who we will encounter. It’s a matter of waiting and seeing. The important thing is that we’ve been there seven years in a row [in the quarter-finals]. If you play against Bayern Munich [for example] – how many Champions Leagues are there [six] and their history. We are scared too, but at the same time it feels like we are in a dream being here.
“I said to the players: ‘For me, every time we pass, it’s like, wow, I know how hard this is.’ Madrid suffered a lot today [2-1] against Leipzig. People accept this as natural. “This is good, our standards are there, but internally we know it is difficult, but everything is very complicated.”
What Copenhagen didn’t need was scoring twice in five minutes. Rico Lewis’ diligent work resulted in a corner and from there it was all easy for the holders. Álvarez chipped the ball into the penalty area, Peter Ankersen failed to handle Akanji and volleyed it beyond Kamil Grabara.
City’s second came soon after. This time Álvarez scored from his own corner from the left. Rodri’s shot from number 19 hit the post, the ball bounced back to him and he lobbed it towards Álvarez Grabara: the masked number 1 fluttered the shot in.
With a 5-1 lead in the general classification, there was an annihilation. Mateo Kovacic, who required treatment, allowed Jacob Neestrup to chat with his players. The message should have been to hold on tight for as long as possible and see where it takes them.
But as Neestrup acknowledges, no amount of advice can alleviate being one or two grades below. Oscar Bobb was a fitting symbol of this. Taking to the field as number 10 in only his second start of the competition, the 20-year-old roamed around, picked up the ball, threw piercing darts and brought the ball down.
But when Copenhagen scored, Bobb was to blame. The Norwegian player’s loose pass caused the Danish club to break. Elyounoussi dove down the left, cut upfield and touched down Orri Óskarsson. The slick back heel brought the ball back and number 10 struck.
Guardiola grabbed Rohit Saggi’s arm as he discussed a point with the fourth official, and the frustration was eased as City scored in stoppage time. Rodri fired a cross to Haaland, who was lurking inside the area right inside: he controlled, got between Scott McKenna and Elias Jelert and beat Grabara to the left of the latter.
Guardiola’s move in the second half was to give Rodri some rest before heading to Anfield on Sunday; Instead, Sergio Gómez moved to the left, Álvarez crossed and Kovacic moved into the center role.
The atmosphere had calmed down, but what Guardiola wanted was to see his attacks conform to the patterns and rhythms in which he operated them. The merry-go-round of Josko Gvardiol, Kovacic, Rúben Dias, Bobb, Álvarez and others would then please, and as the contest progressed beyond the hour, so did the desire to take on Haaland.
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Matheus Nunes convinced more and more people in his first City campaign. The fluid movement of the Portuguese footballer on the right inside showed that he understood Guardiola’s geometric demands; So is a move on the wing, a spin-around move and a simple take-off on a colleague in better area.
Now Ederson has shown himself adept at how the goalkeeper must always be alert when stopping Magnus Mattsson’s close-range shot and, according to Dias, he was forced to give Stones a point on 22 minutes when Guardiola made a second substitution. breathing person.
Nunes was removed due to what appeared to be a painful finger issue. On the far side, Copenhagen’s faithful danced and sang. Their spirit deserves praise, as does City’s relentless quality.
Neestrup delivered a succinct verdict on City. “They work hard,” the Copenhagen manager said.