Real Madrid vs Man City in the Champions League quarterfinal was entertaining until the final whistle. The first leg featured a 3-3 draw with some stunning goals, whereas the 2nd leg saw the brilliance of Real Madrid's defence as it was held to a 1-1 draw at full-time.
Ultimately, Los Blancos were the team to progress this year as they beat Man City on penalties. They were helped by poor penalties by Bernardo Silva and Mateo Kovacic, after Luka Modric missed Real Madrid's first. Regardless, Real Madrid progressed to the semifinal, where they face Bayern Munich.
However, respect was shared between the two great European sides. Real Madrid and Man City are at the top of their games and alongside Xabi Alonso, it is Pep Guardiola and Carlo Ancelotti who boast the titles of best managers in Europe. Indeed, they embraced each other after locking horns over 210 minutes.
Carlo Ancelotti speaks with Pep Guardiola as Real Madrid beat Man City
As per Football Italia, Carlo Ancelotti recalls congratulating Pep Guardiola and wishing him the very best of luck for the remainder of the season. Don Carlo understands the difficulty of the Premier League schedule, having maintained it himself.
In his own words, Ancelotti said: “I congratulated and wished him the best of luck for the rest of the season. They progressed last season, and this time, it was our turn. It was a great feat to win today and I am really happy.”
Carlo Ancelotti is not the type of manager who gives away his emotions easily, Real Madrid fans know this better than most. Therefore, it is great to see the legendary coach celebrating his team's triumphs as they fought hard to beat Man City in the Champions League.
Although City have shown more frailties this season than last time out, to beat them in a quarterfinal tie should not be overlooked. After all, Pep Guardiola is the current champion of the Champions League but Ancelotti hopes to return it home come the end of the season.
The four remaining teams in the Champions League semifinals are Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund. Of course, there is every possibility that Real Madrid could meet with Kylian Mbappe in his final game for PSG in the Champions League final - A conflict of interest for the Frenchman, for sure.
How would you rate Carlo Ancelotti's Real Madrid tenure out of ten?