City storm to UCL showdown as Pep's boys make Real Madrid look like Vihiga Bullets

Manchester City are out of this world, and only a miracle could stop them from winning the Champions League crown in Istanbul!

Pep Guardiola's side battered reigning champions Real Madrid 4-0 in the semi-final return leg on Wednesday night at Etihad, going through 5-1 on aggregate.

In a cat-and-mouse game, the Cityzens brushed aside the reigning champions as if they were FKF Premier League strugglers, not 14-time Champions League winners.

And it's not just the dominance in possession (70%-30% in the first half) but the entirety of 90 minutes of football that has left us with a staggering conclusion - City are out of this world.

Pep's mean machine rushed from the very first second, making sure the Spaniards got the message that there won't be any chance for redemption or miraculous comebacks this time.

Haaland was inches away from scoring two times in the opening 20 minutes, but magical Courtois managed to deny both his headers with some sensational goalkeeping class.

But not even Courtois could stop that avalanche in front of him at the minute 23rd. Unplayable Stones, centre-back btw, found himself on the right wing, moving the ball via Walker to KDB, whose assists are simply a work of art - between two Real Madrid players, he put it on a plate for Bernardo Silva for a much-deserved lead and jubilation at Etihad!

It took Real Madrid another ten minutes to wake up, at least temporarily, from this nightmare and complete five or more passes. Finally, we saw more than an exquisite chance for the visitors as Kroos fired superbly from long range, but his effort ended on a crossbar.

At that moment, for a second or two, we thought we'd got back our game, but it was nothing more than an illusion. City fired back almost instantly, with Grealish finding dashing Gundogan, whose shot was stopped but not Silva's header a moment later, as Portuguese bagged a brace to put his side 2-0 up.

Even after the break, things didn't change much, with Los Blancos stars like Modric, Kroos, Camavinga, Vinicius Jr and Benzema looking like non-league amateurs faced with City's aggressive pressing in defence and flawless attacking.

Ancelotti tried changing the game's momentum with a few subs midway through the second half, but it was Haaland with another clear-cut chance to make it 3-0. However, Courtois and the woodwork saved the defending champions from further humiliation. At least, for a few minutes.

The third came thanks to Akanji's header and Eder Militao's unfortunate clearance, putting an end to this tie with 15 minutes still left on the clock. The home fans turned their back to pitch, celebrating the glorious victory in the famous Poznan style.

One last nail in Madrid's coffin was Julian Alvarez's late goal, following Foden's astonishingly smooth assist, as Pep's subs stepped up to show every second counts in historical games like this one.

King is dead, long live the (new) king! Inter don't stand a chance.

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Semi-final, first leg

Tuesday, 9 May

Real Madrid - Man.City 1-1 (1-0)

/Vinicius 36 - De Bruyne 68/

Wednesday, 10 May

Milan - Inter 0-2 (0-2)

/Dzeko 8, Mkhitaryan 11/

Semi-final, second leg

Tuesday, 16 May

Inter - Milan 1-0 (0-0) (3-0 on agg)

/Lautaro 74/

Wednesday, 17 May

Man City - Real Madrid 4-0 (2-0) (5-1 on agg)

/Bernardo Silva 23, 37, Eder Militao 76 og, Alvarez 90+1/