BY Jonathan Ledger
Manchester City qualified for their first ever UEFA Champions League final following a 2-0 win over ten-man Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) at the Etihad stadium on Tuesday night.
The Cityzens prevailed through two Riyad Mahrez goals — one in each half — to hand them a 4-1 aggregate victory over PSG who had Angel Di Maria sent off.
Man City progress into their first UCL final in 51 years, since a 1970 final appearance in the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup.
The UCL final appearance will also be the first in 10 years for Pep Guardiola, City manager, who last got to the semi-final stage — and lost — five years ago.
Mahrez continued his red-hot form with the opener on 11 minutes, gobbling up a rebound from Kevin de Bruyne’s shot before finishing off beyond Keylor Navas in goal.
PSG had two quick opportunities to respond but Marquinhos hit the bar while Di Maria shot just wide from outside the area with the goal gaping.
PSG had several openings but were disjointed in the absence of injured Kylian Mbappe, their talisman striker.
The best efforts from Neymar Jr. and Di Maria could not also unlock a sturdy City defence
City started the second half like they finished the first, dominating PSG before doubling the scoreline through a devastating counter attack that was finished off by Mahrez.
Just like the first leg, Mauricio Pochettino’s men lost their cool and Di Maria was sent off for an off-the-ball stamp on Fernandinho, City captain.
Guardiola’s side had several opportunities to add gloss to a dominant performance but Phil Foden was thwarted by Navas.
They however saw out the tie for their seventh consecutive UCL match win, a record for an English club.
City now await the winner of the tie between Chelsea and Real Madrid in the final set for Atatürk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey.
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