Manchester City worked tirelessly on Tuesday to break through Atlético Madrid’s defense to earn a 1-0 victory in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal. The game was advertised as an unstoppable force meets immovable object, and Atlético Madrid delivered in terms of dropping everyone into defense.
Atlético Madrid essentially played a formation of 5-5 with all hands-on deck in defense. Manchester City didn’t get a single decent look in the first half and Atlético didn’t get any looks. The defending LaLiga champions didn’t record a single shot in the entire game while City recorded two on target.
I made a line graph emphasizing how much I wanted to fall asleep while watching the game and it reached its peak at halftime.
I'm glad this game got more exciting because I was ready to pass out after 45 minutes of Atlético parking the bus. pic.twitter.com/2G9j03HmgW
— David Moore (@RunDavidMoore) April 5, 2022
Then came Jamie Carragher and Micah Richards.
Paramount+ did a great job recruiting on-air talent for the Champions League. Those dark days of Champions League on TNT where random dudes like Steve Nash providing commentary are long behind us. Now we have a crew that provide great moments like this one where Richards and Carragher sing about Sadio Mané while recapping highlights.
Funny Micah Richards And Jamie Carragher Moment
What was better, the pass from Trent-Alexander Arnold or the chant from @MicahRichards and @JamieCarragher? pic.twitter.com/qhRXJvjFwU
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) April 5, 2022
The shenanigans between the two were also seen in the pregame show when Carragher and Kate Abdo poked fun at Richards for losing an arm-wrestling contest with former USMNT great Oguchi Onyewu. To be fair though, I wouldn’t want to arm-wrestle the guy who got into a fist fight with Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Loses an arm-wrestle, returns to the UK in disguise!
The crew didn't let @MicahRichards forget his defeat to @OguchiOnyewu5 in New York. pic.twitter.com/s1hCSDIS0x— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) April 5, 2022
As you can see from the chart I made, the second half between City and Atlético became way more exciting. Phil Foden deserves most of the praise as his introduction in the 68th minute electrified the game and he set up Kevin de Bruyne for the game-winner.
Clinical from Kevin De Bruyne on his 50th #UCL appearance.
The ball from Phil Foden, though. pic.twitter.com/647s2zqN4U— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) April 5, 2022
Ángel Correa kicking a ball into Jack Grealish’s face late in the game made for a chippy and entertaining ending. I hope that energy continues in the return leg.
I expect plenty more bus parking from Atlético Madrid in the second leg which will be played next Wednesday.
