Manchester City took a giant stride towards the Champions League semi-finals with an outstanding 3-0 performance to overpower Bayern Munich at Etihad Stadium.
Erling Haaland, inevitably, was on target with his 45th goal of the season to make him the highest scorer in all competitions in a single campaign since the Premier League began 30 years ago, surpassing Mohamed Salah and Ruud van Nistelrooy.
City, however, gave a powerful all-round team display and Bayern, under new coach Thomas Tuchel, face a mountainous task to turn this quarter-final around in the second leg at the AllianzArena.
“Emotionally I’m destroyed,” said Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola. “I have aged 10 more years. It was so demanding a game. It was not comfortable.
“Now I have to relax – a day off for the guys, prepare for Leicester [in the Premier League on Saturday].”
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Rodri broke the deadlock in spectacular fashion with a curling left-foot drive into the top corner after 27 minutes while Bayern had chances of their own, especially former City forward Leroy Sane, who brought a vital save out of Ederson early in the second half.
City were always a threat and extended their lead with 20 minutes left, Haaland crossing perfectly for Bernardo Silva to head home after Jack Grealish stole possession off Dayot Upemecano.
Haaland was not to be denied himself and he pounced for City’s third six minutes later, getting on the end of John Stones’ headed knockdown to sweep a finish past Bayern keeper Yann Sommer.
“It was an incredible result but I know a little bit what can happen in Munich,” added Guardiola, who managed Bayern Munich from 2013 until 2016, winning three league titles and two domestic doubles.
“If you don’t perform really well they are able to score one, two, three. I know that, the players know that.
“It’s an incredible result, but we have to do our game with huge, huge personality. If we don’t do our game anything can happen.
“To knock out these teams you have to have two good games, not just one.”
