Manchester City (hereafter referred to as Man City) of the English Professional Football Premier League (EPL) has lifted various championships after Sheikh Mansour, a wealthy man from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), took over the team in 2008. However, what has not yet been surpassed is the Big Ear (an alias for the European Champions League championship cup). Since 2011, every season has been slippery, so I had to listen to the sarcastic saying, ‘You can’t buy the Champions League with money’.
Man City is busy with the Champions League challenge this season. Man City drew 1-1 in the second leg of the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League against Bayern Munich, Germany on the 20th. Manchester City advanced to the semi-finals with a total of 4-1 in the first and second games. It is the third consecutive season and the fourth since 2011 to advance to the semifinals.
Manchester City’s opponent in the semifinals is Spain’s Real Madrid. Real Madrid, the champions of the last tournament, have lifted the big ear 14 times, which is the envy of Manchester City. record for most wins. The two teams met last season in the semifinals. Man City won the first game 4-3, but lost the second game 1-3 and swallowed tears with a total of 5-6 in the first and second games. Manchester City also failed to advance to the finals in the 2015-2016 season as they lost to Real Madrid 0-1 on aggregate in the first and second games.
Man City’s trusted corner is ‘monster striker’ Elling Hollan (23, Norway). Hollan, who joined ahead of this season, solved the goal-making ability that Man City had been worried about. Hollan also scored a goal in the second leg of the semifinal against Munich that day. Man City, with Hollan, the top scorer in the Champions League this season (12 goals), will play Real Madrid in the first leg of the semifinals on the 10th of next month.
On the other side of the semifinals, the Italian ‘Milan Derby’,먹튀검증 considered the best derby in the world, took place. Inter Milan drew 3-3 with Portugal’s Benfica that day. They advanced to the semifinals with a total score of 5-3 in the first and second games. As a result, they faced AC Milan, who had advanced by defeating Napoli, Italy the previous day.
The two teams are prestigious clubs in Italy’s Serie A, using the same hometown and the same stadium. The rivalry between the two teams with a long history faded as they entered a dark period together in the 2010s, but Inter Milan in 2021 and AC Milan in 2022 won the league again and shot a flare of resurrection. And as they met in the semifinals of this tournament, they were ready to heat up Milan again. The two teams combined to lift the ‘Big Ear’ 10 times. AC Milan 7 times. It is second in all-time winning titles behind Real Madrid. Inter Milan is number 3. The first match of the derby will be held on the 9th of next month.