Manchester City has gone from being the “other” team in Manchester to becoming a glorified staple of excellence both in the Premier League as well as in European football in general. With ground breaking yet wise signings almost every off season and led by the modern Obi Wan Kenobi of football Pep Guardiola, City's roof and limits go higher and higher as seasons go by. Still, the UEFA Champions League trophy, Europe's most coveted club football title, has been the one title that has managed to escape City's grasp for the past seasons. While the top sports betting sites around already have the Champions League Odds up and running with their top picks between Man City and Chelsea, will this be the year that Manchester City ends their continental trophy drought?
Let's look back to their UCL Season and forward to what could happen on their way to the title.
A Perfect Start? That's the Man City Way of Doing Things
While Manchester City entered this season's UCL as runner ups to Liverpool's historic Premier League title run, that did not stop them from showing up and dominating the initial group stage of the competition. While most football analysts and fanatics argue that City's fixtures in this season's UCL tournament were relatively easy, that still doesn't take away from the fact that Pep's squad dominated from left to right. Sharing group C with Portuguese giants Porto, who would later move on to eliminate CR7's Juventus in the round of 16 knockout stage, French side Olympique Marseille and Greek powerhouse Olympiacos Man City dominated from left to right.
With five wins and one draw and a staggering thirteen goals scored to one goal conceded it was a no brainer to start picturing City as a favorite to go for a deep title run yet again this season. With Borussia Monchengladbach waiting in the round of 16, there was literally no stopping this team.
German Teams in the Knockout Stage? No Problem for Pep and His Boys
After putting up some world class numbers in the group stage of this year's UCL tournament it was time for City to move forward in their hopes of finally reaching the title. First in hand was no other than one of the best German teams in actuality that is not either Bayern Munich or Borussia Dortmund, Borussia Monchengladbach.
The Bundesliga squad who barely made it out of a group B that hosted Inter Milan, Real Madrid and Shakhtar Donetsk was ready to continue their giant toppling campaign only to be stopped in their tracks by a City team who with a 4-0 aggregate score showed them the way out of the tournament. If there is one thing to remember from this series, De Bruyne's beautiful strike to open up the score in the second leg of the series, a world class goal, something that the Belgian superstar has City fans accustomed to.
Once Monchengladbach were out of the way it was time to deal with another German threat, this time in the form and shape of Borussia Dortmund. Led by Norwegian wunderkind striker Erling Haaland the yellow and black squad were held down by brilliant defensive performances from City's back end and the European eruption of British youngster Phil Foden. Foden, who scored twice in the series, once in each of the games took over the star role in the series to guide Pep´s team to yet another semifinal stage in Europe's biggest club football tournament.
To The Finals Via Paris and now Chelsea FC Awaits
As the semifinals came along, M'bappe and Neymar's PSG awaited. While on paper this series had all the fixings to be an all-out brawl between two of the best teams in Europe, Manchester City, led by the brilliant outings by players like Kevin De Bruyne, Riyad Mahrez and Portuguese defender Ruben Dias, City made easy work of the Parisian giants with a global 4-1 score. Just a day after punching their ticket to the finals, Guardiola's squad found out that the UCL finals will be an all English affair as they'll be facing Chelsea FC who knocked out Spanish giants Real Madrid to advance.
It will be Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel's second trip to the final in as many years after taking PSG to the finals last year in a losing effort against Bayern Munich. While Chelsea's core of players led by inevitably one of the best if not the best mid center in the game, N'golo Kante can surely put up a valiant fight, everything is falling into place for Manchester City to come away with the title.
It has been 66 years, a lot of work, good and bad moments and waiting but Manchester City fans can rejoice in the fact that “The Citizens” are finally getting their chance for a shot at the coveted UCL title. Now that only Chelsea FC stands between City and the UCL trophy and going into this final after nabbing yet another Premier League title, Manchester City is putting out all the right vibes when thinking that the time has finally come for Pep and his boys to bring Europe's most coveted club football title to Etihad Stadium.
Finals have been played, titles won and a legacy as one of the best if not the best British football team of the 21st century has been cemented but yet that one title has eluded them for what seems like an eternity now. Will this finally be the year that City breaks the streak? Analysts think so, fans think so, so why not hop on that train as well? Given that this will end up being Sergio Aguero's last game with the team, a win in the Champions League finals as a sendoff for a bona fide team legend is more than suitable.
