3 Reasons why Man City Reached UCL Final
PSG failed to end City's unbeaten run in this UCL season last night. Let's find the reasons for being so lethal in the pitch. Here I want to point out 3 specific reasons:
1. Rotation of Players Whole Season
Man City made 2 changes in their 1st leg's squad to face PSG in Etihad. Fernandinho and Zinchenko were in replacing Rodri and Joao. Man City played a single match after the first leg against Crystal Palace, and Guardiola made 8 changes. Fresh pair of legs always makes a difference in the big matches. Guardiola also succeeds in ruling PL by using his deep squad. More concretely, 16 players in his squad played at least 2000 minutes this season so far; surprisingly, Liverpool has only 9 such players. Consequently,'' Big Match, Big Challenge? Solution: Fresh Legs" has been the motto of Pep this season.
2. The Ruben Dias Effect
Man City has 5 central defenders in the squad. But Ruben was outstanding. Man City signs him on September'20 on a six-year contract for a fee reported of €68 million. Since then, he started 48 times, playing almost 4000 minutes on the pitch. Blocking shots, cool-headed passing, lethal in the air is his traits. Just a single Yellow Card this UCL season and a total of 5 in all competitions. He started every match in UCL except one. As a result, Man City conceded only 4 goals this season, whereas 9 goals in 9 matches in the previous season, which proves his immense effect in defense.
3. Team Combination
Every team managed by Guardiola was depended on two main formulae- pressing and passing. He tried these tactics in Man City in the last few seasons. But he could not pick any perfect combo. Two fullbacks of this team, Zinchenko and Kyle Walker's pace, give him the extreme speed in the counter attack. KDB is, as always, anchoring the tone of any attack. He is currently the best attacking midfielder in the world, without any doubt. Gundogan and Silva are prominent in holding the ball and swallowing pressure. Phil Foden is at his best in the counterattack recently. His chemistry with KDB gives this team an extra benefit. Riad Maharez, as usual, showing his class with his clinical finishes. An interesting trivia for the readers- the top scorer in all competition this season for the Citizen is Gundogan, who plays in Midfield and, more surprisingly, no striker in the top 4. This is how Pep made his team.
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