Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has highlighted what the Manchester City players did during the early stages of Wednesday’s 4-0 victory over the Spanish club.
City comfortably secured their place in the Champions League final last night by beating Carlo Ancelotti’s side thanks to goals from Bernardo Silva, Manuel Akanji and Julian Alvarez.
Following the victory, the opposition goalkeeper, spoke to the official Real website about the game and shared what the City players did on the pitch, particularly in the early minutes.
Courtois highlights City tactics
He said: “They really pressed us high from the start, not letting us play the ball out and they pressured with a lot of players so we were penned back in our area.
“We dealt with it pretty well early on but we didn’t manage to impose ourselves, create chances or cause them any problems. They were very comfortable and they got the goal. We struggled to get into the game.”
The first half saw the home side have 72% possession, racking up 13 shots at goal with five being on target.
This highlights the pressure Pep Guardiola’s side put Real under, particularly in an attacking sense as Courtois spoke about.
With the Belgian shot-stopper making four saves in total throughout the game, it’s safe to say that he helped his side from falling to a more severe scoreline.
If Guardiola’s tactics, especially in the first half, were to put Real under significant pressure and control the game with possession, then the players certainly did that.
Moving forward, if the Manchester club can put in a similar performance in the final against Inter Milan as they did last night, they would surely be in with a great chance of winning the Champions League.
