Man City lost to Monaco, eliminated from Champions League

Coach Pep Guardiola's team suffered a 1-3 defeat at Louis II Stadium in the second leg of the round of 16 on March 15.

Monaco reached the Champions League quarter-finals thanks to the away goals rule. Photo: Reuters.

Goals: Mbappe (8'), Tavares (29'), Bakayoko (77') - Sane (71').

After seeing fellow countrymen PSG suffer a shocking defeat against Barca, Monaco staged a stunning comeback to eliminate Man City from the competition.

Tiemoue Bakayoko's header sealed a 3-1 win for Monaco to seal the most dramatic tie of the round of 16 on aggregate. Man City went close and were just 13 minutes away from progressing after Leroy Sane's equaliser.

Monaco had started brilliantly thanks to an early goal from Kylian Mbappe and a double from Fabinho in the first half. The first half also saw the home team completely dominate.

After two matches, Monaco drew 6-6 with Man City but won the ticket to the next round thanks to the away goals rule.

Pep Guardiola's disappointment after the match. Photo: Reuters.

Man City had the advantage with a 5-3 win in the first leg, but showed weakness in the rematch in Monaco. Contrary to Guardiola's bold pre-match declaration that Man City would play attacking football from the start, the visitors suffered in the first half and responded weakly in the second half to the home team's spirited play. Man City's defense had another disastrous night, constantly making mistakes in positioning and marking.

Man City veteran Bacary Sagna contributed to both of Monaco's first goals. The former Arsenal defender made a positioning error, allowing Mbappe to break the offside trap for the opener from close range. Sagna also left John Stones on his wing for Fabinho's goal. Bakayoko's winner was the result of the Man City defence forgetting about him.

Pep Guardiola won the Champions League twice with Barca and led Bayern to the semi-finals three years in a row. However, he was eliminated in the round of 16 for the first time with Man City. This is a decline compared to the previous season when Man City reached the semi-finals under coach Manuel Pellegrini.

Man City's defeat leaves the Premier League with only one representative in the quarter-finals, Leicester. The "Foxes" along with Barca, Real, Bayern, Juventus, Atletico, Dortmund and Monaco are the eight strongest teams in Europe this season.

Aguero failed to bring miracles to Man City. Photo: Reuters.

Monaco have scored 123 goals this season, a number that shows the strength of the attacking line that coach Leonardo Jardim possesses. This gives Monaco more confidence in the task of overturning the first leg defeat.

Meanwhile, coach Pep Guardiola was unable to take advantage of the two-goal gap and wanted to solve the problem by playing an open game. He only arranged Fernandinho to play midfield, leaving Yaya Toure on the bench. Man City's defense, therefore, did not have the necessary support when there were up to five Monaco attackers ready to get behind Fernandinho.

Faced with Man City's defensive style, Monaco, with their young and enthusiastic players, got what they wanted. 18-year-old striker Mbappe replaced his senior Falcao to score the opening goal, before the French U21 midfielderBakayokoBakayoko was not only named man of the match for his decisive goal but also for his superb performance in midfield, winning back possession nine times.

Guardiola once declared that he would fail if he did not bring any trophies to the Etihad in his first season. After being eliminated from the Champions League, Man City's target now is the Premier League and the FA Cup. However, with a 10-point gap to Chelsea, the FA Cup is probably the most practical arena for Man City.

According to VNE