Real Madrid vs Manchester City player ratings: Gareth Bale? Cristiano Ronaldo? Who was the star man?
An own goal took Real Madrid through to a second Champions League final in three seasons but who shone brightest?
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Real Madrid ground out a convincing 1-0 victory over Manchester City on Wednesday to line up a Champions League final against city rival Atletico Madrid.
The second leg of the semi-final was decided by a superb shot by Gareth Bale from a tight angle that deflected off defender Fernando in the 20th minute and was marked down as an own goal. Real advanced with a 1-0 aggregate win after a scoreless first-leg draw in England last week.
Real will be trying to win its 11th Champions League title in the all-Spanish showdown in Milan on 28 May, a rematch of the 2014 final - when it beat Atletico 4-1 after extra time.
Wednesday's win ended City's best ever participation in the Champions League, though it was outclassed on the night and never really looked like turning the game around.
But which player impressed the most on Wednesday night? Check out our player ratings:
The wealthy English club hadn't made it past the round of 16 until this season's campaign.
Atletico eliminated five-time champion Bayern Munich in the other semifinal on Tuesday.
After failing to win in Manchester, where Madrid played without Cristiano Ronaldo because of an injury, Manuel Pellegrini's City faced a difficult task at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. The hosts had a perfect record in this season's competition, winning all six home games and outscoring opponents 19-0.
Madrid pushed forward from the start and it didn't take long before it opened the scoring after a perfect pass by Dani Carvajal to Bale into the area. The Welshman's shot from an angle clipped Fernando and looped over Joe Hart and into the net.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments