Man City: Meet the Champions League winners
Saturday, June 10, 2023
Article summary
Key players, rankings, tactical analysis: all you need to know about the UEFA Champions League winners.
Article top media content
Article body
Manchester City have completed a famous treble by winning their first UEFA Champions League.
UEFA.com profiles Pep Guardiola's side.
Man City (ENG)
UEFA coefficient ranking: 1
This season: W8 D5 L0 F32 A5
Group G: Winners
Round of 16: W 8-1agg vs Leipzig
Quarter-finals: W 4-1agg vs Bayern
Semi-finals: W 5-1agg vs Real Madrid
Final: W1-0 vs Inter
Pedigree
Last final appearance: 2021 (L 0-1 vs Chelsea)
Last season: Semi-finals (L 5-6agg vs Real Madrid)
Best European Cup performance: Winners (2022/23)
Campaign
City wasted little time in securing their place in the knockout stage for the tenth successive season, but it wasn't all plain sailing for Pep Guardiola's star-studded ensemble. They needed a spectacular winner from the prolific Erling Haaland to complete the turnaround against Dortmund in September before playing over an hour with ten men in a goalless draw at Copenhagen.
After a quiet display in the last-16 first leg against Leipzig, Haaland hit a record-breaking five goals in the return before adding two more to his tally in an emphatic last-eight triumph against Bayern. City were as impressive as ever as in the semi-finals, cruising past holders Real Madrid 5-1 on aggregate, before crowning a phenomenal campaign in Istanbul.
Why they went all the way
City have one of the game's most astute tacticians, phenomenal strength in depth and one of the best strikers of his generation at their disposal. There are no guarantees in a competition where fine margins so often prove decisive, but Guardiola's team were a cut above the rest this season.
How did Man City play?
John Stones' role as part of a double pivot when City had possession – which is the majority of the time – enabled Guardiola's team to exert even greater levels of control in games. Pinning opponents in their own half with a high defensive line, City circulated the ball with trademark ease until the relentless pressure finally told. Unlike last season, when Guardiola often operated with a false nine, the Cityzens of 2022/23 had arguably the most prolific focal point in the game to finish off their free-flowing moves.
Coach: Josep Guardiola
One of the most decorated coaches in world football, the 52-year-old won this competition twice with Barcelona and ended a 12-year wait for a third triumph in Istanbul. He scooped three league titles apiece at the helm of the Catalan club and Bayern, and made it five Premier League winners' medals with City in 2022/23 before adding the FA Cup and UEFA Champions League titles to become the first coach since Sir Alex Ferguson in 1999 to guide an English club to the treble.
Key player: Kevin De Bruyne
Haaland would be the obvious choice – 52 goals this season makes him pretty influential, after all – but De Bruyne remains a talismanic figure, contributing a constant supply of chances for the relentless Norwegian. The 31-year-old midfielder has laid on 31 goals in all competitions this term – his most in a single campaign for the club. He was forced off injured in Istanbul but, unlike in 2021, the Cityzens emerged triumphant in a tense showpiece.
Did you know?
At 22 years 272 days old and after only 27 games, Haaland was both the youngest and the quickest player to reach 35 Champions League goals.
Donate to aid communities impacted by the recent earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria.