Manchester City reached their first final under Pep Guardiola as the Premier League leaders beat battling Bristol City in the Carabao Cup.<\/p>\n
Already leading 2-1 from the first leg, goals from Leroy Sane, Sergio Aguero and Kevin de Bruyne at Ashton Gate ensured Manchester City’s place at Wembley on Sunday, 25 February.<\/p>\n
They dominated the first half and Sane deservedly put the visitors in front shortly before the break, with his deflected shot bouncing in after Bernardo Silva had dispossessed Hordur Magnusson.<\/p>\n
Manchester City looked to have all but killed the tie early in the second half when Aguero’s strike across goal rounded off a lethal counter attack.<\/p>\n
The Championship team produced a rousing final 20 minutes to give Guardiola’s side a brief late scare, with Marlon Pack’s smart header and Aden Flint’s stoppage-time goal threatening for a moment to take the tie into extra time.<\/p>\n
But De Bruyne’s calm finish with the final kick of the game denied Bristol City a creditable draw on the night and confirmed Manchester City’s place in the final where they will face either Arsenal or Chelsea, who play the second leg of their semi-final on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
The Robins, meanwhile, will turn their attention to converting their current fifth place in the second tier into promotion – with their four previous victories over Premier League opposition in the Carabao Cup giving them a taste of what they hope is to come.<\/p>\n
Guardiola has previously used this competition to rest and rotate a number of his star players, but he picked a near full-strength side for the second leg, making just two changes to the team that beat Newcastle in the Premier League on Sunday.<\/p>\n
His selection was tribute to the way Bristol City had performed at the Etihad a fortnight ago, impressing many with their adventure and attacking intent.<\/p>\n
There would be no such repeat at Ashton Gate, however, with the away side taking complete control almost from the very first whistle.<\/p>\n
Aguero’s cross clipped the bar and David Silva’s low shot had to be palmed away even before Sane’s opener – and once Manchester City were able to add a ruthless streak to their overall dominance it was always going to be a big ask for the home team.<\/p>\n
Despite the impressive late rally, culminating in makeshift striker Flint stabbing in for 2-2, the visitors were still more than good value for their victory across both legs.<\/p>\n
They had 68% possession and finished Tuesday’s game with 28 shots on goal, scoring from three of the six they got on target.<\/p>\n
Can Man City do the quadruple?<\/strong> The 47-year-old Spaniard, who won 14 trophies in four years as Barcelona boss and a further seven in three years at Bayern Munich, is hoping to lead City to an unprecedented quadruple.<\/p>\n He has repeatedly played down his team’s chances of achieving that feat, yet they continue to fight strongly on all fronts – already 12 points clear in the Premier League, they have also reached the last 16 of the Champions League and the fourth round of the FA Cup.<\/p>\n Domestically, only Liverpool have found a way to beat them so far this season, meaning the one apparent remaining question mark is over whether they can translate their league and cup form into European competition.<\/p>\n If they are able to progress beyond FC Basel and into the quarter-finals of the Champions League, even at this early stage they may seldom have a better opportunity of sealing a clean sweep of league and cups.<\/p>\n A step too far for brave Bristol City<\/strong> Despite trailing on aggregate throughout the second leg, the fact they became only the second team since October to score twice in a domestic match against Manchester City spoke volumes of both their quality and spirit.<\/p>\n The Robins had already seen off top-flight sides Watford, Crystal Palace, Stoke City and famously Manchester United on their way to the last four – though two legs against the runaway Premier League leaders was always going to be a tall order.<\/p>\n Following a tentative opening period, during which they were pinned back for long spells, they looked much more of a threat with the half-time arrival of \u00a35.3m summer signing Famara Diedhiou.<\/p>\n Head coach Johnson will now hope the return of Diedhiou, who has missed the past three months with a knee injury, can also inspire his side towards achieving the ultimate goal of securing top-flight football for the first time since 1980.<\/p>\n “I’m very proud, not just of the team, but of the club,” said Johnson.<\/p>\n “It was a fantastic run. The fact is, it has taken them two injury-time goals in both legs to beat us.<\/p>\n “We came close to a draw today. They are a top, top side, probably the best side I’ve seen live.”<\/p>\n What they said: “They have so many players that are intricate and have class on the ball and sometimes you have to hold your hands up and say ‘they are a better side than us’.<\/p>\n “But the spirit we showed, we never gave in and we continued to try and attack and scored two goals and not many teams can score two goals against a side like that.”<\/p>\n Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola on Sky Sports: “We are so happy to be there, to reach this final. We played an amazing game until 2-0 and then we lost control, these type of games never end until the end.<\/p>\n “At 2-0 we knew it would be easier because they needed three or four goals but with one minute left it was 2-2 and anything could happen.<\/p>\n “It’s not for me, it’s for Manchester City, a club who are trying to reach another level. We try to keep going, the important thing for me is to be there.”<\/p>\n What next?<\/strong> –<\/p>\n Source: BBC<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Manchester City reached their first final under Pep Guardiola as the Premier League leaders beat battling Bristol City in the Carabao Cup. Already leading 2-1 from the first leg, goals from Leroy Sane, Sergio Aguero and Kevin de Bruyne at Ashton Gate ensured Manchester City’s place at Wembley on Sunday, 25 February. 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\nGuardiola is now just one game from winning his first silverware with Manchester City, having endured only the second barren season of his managerial career in 2016-17.<\/p>\n
\nLee Johnson and his players earned plenty of plaudits after their first-leg defeat, with Guardiola describing Bristol City as a “fantastic team” and lauding their style of play and attacking intent as “good for the show”.<\/p>\n
\nBristol City boss Lee Johnson: “We came close to a draw. They are a top, top side, probably the best side I’ve seen live.<\/p>\n
\nBristol City resume their bid for promotion to the Premier League as they host QPR on Saturday, 27 January (15:00 GMT).<\/p>\n