ISTANBUL – Manchester City won the Champions League title for the first time as they beat Inter Milan 1-0 at Istanbul’s Ataturk Olimpiyat Stadium on Saturday.
Rodri struck within the 68th minute to see Premier League champions and FA Cup winners lift a treble this season.
“We made history today,” said City captain Ilkay Gundogan. “We knew everyone was talking about high notes. The pressure was there, but this team is built to handle the pressure in the perfect possible way.
While that is the first time City have won Europe’s biggest club football competition, it’s Pep Guardiola’s third Champions League crown as a coach.
He had tears in his eyes as he celebrated on the pitch together with his players after ending a protracted wait for the title he last won with Barcelona in 2011.
It was his thirtieth major trophy as a coach and the second time he won a treble, emulating his feat with Barcelona in 2009.
City became only the second English club to win the highest two domestic trophies and the Champions League, after Manchester United did in 1999.
The town triumphed regardless of losing inspirational midfielder Kevin De Bruyne to a first-half injury and star striker Erling Haaland, who had a remarkably quiet evening finally achieving his ambitions of reaching the highest of European football – 15 years after Abu Dhabi’s ruling family turned it into one among the world’s richest teams.
The owner, Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, was present to see the coronation, seeing his team in person for less than the second time since purchasing the club in 2008.
Inter got here into the sport because the underdog but pushed City until the ultimate whistle, with Romelu Lukaku having a probability to equalize late on when he headed straight for Ederson from around 4 meters (yards).
City’s winner got here as Rodri collected Bernardo Silva’s cutback and shot through the crowded penalty area.
The relief was unmistakable as he sped towards the City fans and dropped to his knees to have a good time.
Inter nearly leveled the rating inside minutes of that goal when Federico Dimarco hit the crossbar from close range.
Then he looked like he turned in a rebound, only to see his header bounce off teammate Lukaku.
Despite all of the pre-match speak about City’s superiority, they won by the perfect of the margins.
Had Lukuku been more clinical in these final moments, Inter could have a minimum of benefited from additional time.
If Dimarco hadn’t hit the Belgian striker squarely within the legs with the goal he was aiming for, Inter could have responded to Rodri’s goal immediately.
And if Lautaro Martinez had chosen Lukaku as an alternative of attempting to beat Ederson from the smallest angle when the rating was 0-0, the consequence might have been very different.
But City were the team that found their way, even at night once they weren’t at their best, and showed some examples of fluid play that saw them beat Bayern Munich and Real Madrid on their solution to the ultimate.
It was as if the nerves got hold of Guardiola’s players. The load of expectations seemed an excessive amount of, even at the top of the season when he had pushed all his rivals aside.
Also, the fans who had been raiding Istanbul all week seemed overwhelmed and unable to choose up their team.
They probably feared the worst when De Bruyne fell clutching his right foot within the first half. It was as if history was repeating itself after an injury forced the Belgium international out as City lost to Chelsea of their only other Champions League final in 2021.
But just when it looked like Inter might cause one among the most important surprises in a Champions League final in history, Rodri hit the decisive moment.
Bernardo’s run from the suitable side of the box pulled the Inter defense off form. Severing the ball, Rodri reacted fastest, lunging forward before striking with power and precision beyond Inter’s desperate bodies.
When the ultimate whistle blew, the Spanish midfielder led the charge to the opposite end of the pitch, making a celebratory tackle in front of delighted City fans.
Europe has been conquered. The mission that began 15 years ago has been accomplished.