Report and reaction
FULL TIME: Bristol City 2-3 Manchester City (agg: 3-5)
Phew! What an end to a memorable semi-final! Manchester City are on their way to Wembley, where they’ll play either Chelsea or Arsenal on Sunday 25 February. They’re one match away from their fifth League Cup! And the quadruple is still on! Bristol City meanwhile are left to concentrate on the league, and their push for promotion to the Premier League. On the evidence of this cup run, they’d be a worthy addition to the top flight. A first major cup final since 1909 wasn’t to be, but they’ve done themselves proud against the best side in the land.
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GOAL! Bristol City 2-3 Manchester City (De Bruyne 90+6); agg 3-5
Bristol City over-commit. David Silva slips a pass down the left for Sane, who rolls into the centre. De Bruyne races in, and slams into the bottom right. City worried? No. Nearly, but no.
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90 min +5: Silva is booked for faffing around. Then there’s space for Flint down the right, but he can only slice behind for a goal kick from a tight spot.
GOAL! Bristol City 2-2 Manchester City (Flint 90+4); agg 3-4
But hold on! Hold on! Brownhill crosses deep from the left. Reid pulls off the last man at the far post, heads across the face of goal, and Flint slides in! Game on! Shame there’s only 60 seconds to go!
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90 min +3: The Ashton Gate faithful are serenading their heroes. It’s been a superb cup run, and the famous ballboy-bothering win over Manchester United will never be forgotten.
90 min +2: Kent slips a ball wide left for Diedhiou, tight on the touchline. He makes good for a while, but eventually runs into Fernandinho. Manchester City go up the other end, Gundogan having a whack from the penalty spot, after good work from Danilo and Sane. His shot is deflected out for a corner, which leads to nothing.
90 min: Only five minutes remain of Bristol City’s dream. Unless ...
89 min: Kent dances down the right but runs into trouble. David Silva races up the other end, spreading the ball towards Danilo on the right. Danilo opens his legs, enters the Bristol City area, and fires a low shot inches wide of the bottom left.
87 min: A throw for Bristol City, deep in enemy territory. Brownhill launches it long. Diedhiou attempts a scissor kick from the edge of the box. Full marks for ambition.
85 min: Walker eventually makes way for Danilo.
83 min: Walker clatters into the back of Diedhiou. Perhaps he’s not so convinced the elbow was an accident.
82 min: Then they replace Aguero with Gundogan.
81 min: Manchester City run down the clock with some pretty triangles.
79 min: To be fair, Walker had taken a rare old clatter on the lug from the elbow of Diedhiou. There didn’t look like there was any bad intent; all accidental. Manchester City prepare Danilo as a replacement, but Walker frowms and shakes his head quite a lot. He’ll continue.
77 min: Bristol City are on the attack, but the referee is forced to stop the play because Walker is down holding his head after a coming together with Diedhiou. The home crowd aren’t too pleased, but the official’s hands were tied.
75 min: The game’s become rather disjointed. Flint tries to make good down the right but shanks his cross deep into the stand behind the goal.
73 min: Kent comes on for Paterson.
71 min: David Silva skitters down the inside-right channel, thinking about a shot. He finds Sane instead. There’s a bit of pinball, and Sane tries to scoop a no-backlift shot into the top right from a tight spot, six yards out. It’s deflected away for a corner which leads to nothing.
70 min: Walker goes bowling down the right at preposterous pace. He whips a low ball into the centre, Flint very nearly sliding into his own net. Steele saves his pal some major embarrassment.
68 min: Manchester City decide to take the sting out of the game, stroking the ball around the centre circle in the professional style.
66 min: That’s woken Ashton Gate up! Manchester City try to put a stop to Bristol City’s gallop immediately, winning a corner from which Aguero blooters over. The hosts regroup. Still plenty of time for the unthinkable to become reality!
GOAL! Bristol City 1-2 Manchester City (Pack 64); agg 2-4
Manchester City go to sleep at the back. Stones lets Paterson race into space down the left. He hooks into an empty area. Pack rises on the penalty spot, and guides a wonderful header into the top left, past a flat-footed Bravo! Bristol City just need the two goals to take this to extra time. They couldn’t, could they?
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63 min: A lovely bittersweet moment in the dugout, as poor Magnusson, no doubt running through tonight’s opening goal again and again in his mind, is momentarily pictured alone. There’s nobody in any of the surrounding seats! But his pal Engvall eventually comes across to sit next to him, in support his friend. There’s nice. He’ll never walk alone.
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62 min: David Silva has space and time to shoot from the edge of the Bristol City area. But he takes far too much of the latter, and is eventually closed down. Then De Bruyne should send Sane scampering clear on goal down the left, but his pass is woefully overhit. A couple of rare slapdash strokes by Manchester City’s greatest artists.
60 min: Reid took a small clatter in the face from Fernandinho there. All accidental, and he’ll be good to continue once a wet sponge works its old-school magic.
58 min: But this is better from Bristol City, who may as well give it a go. Brownhill nicks the ball off Zinchenko down the right, and pulls it back for Diedhiou, who shoots straight at Bravo from 12 yards. A hand-warmer for the Manchester City keeper, nothing more. And then there’s another attack, Paterson racing down the left and dinking in the middle for Reid, who isn’t allowed to get a header goalwards, Fernandinho nipping in to clear.
56 min: Inevitably, some of the fire and passion has gone out of this match. A period of midfield passing that doesn’t amount to much.
54 min: Walker, tight on the right touchline, fires a stunning crossfield pass to Sane, on the left-hand corner of the Bristol City box. Sane looks to send a heatseeker into the top right. It’s not so far away, but high and wide nonetheless. That would have been a picture-book goal.
53 min: De Bruyne has a blast from 25 yards, having waited patiently for his own man Bernardo Silva to get out of the road. Steele is the match of it. A corner results, and nothing much comes of that. The home fans are still giving it plenty, despite being thoroughly deflated by events.
51 min: Sane loses the ball in the middle of the park, allowing Diedhiou to make haste towards the Manchester City box. He crosses for Reid in the centre. Reid tries to flick the ball around Otamendi, but can’t quite make the space for a shot. Despite it all, Bristol City aren’t giving up yet.
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GOAL! Bristol City 0-2 Manchester City (Aguero 50); agg 1-4
Bristol City throw a few men forward. Big mistake. De Bruyne races up the other end, and flashes a pass wide right for Aguero. Baker doesn’t get close to his man. Aguero strides towards the box and unleashes a ripper across Steele and into the bottom left. Manchester City are surely going to Wembley!
49 min: De Bruyne pings a ball down the inside left. It bobbles through to Steele, but only just, Baker ushering it back with Magnussonian patience.
47 min: Manchester City are clearly of a mind to polish this tie off at the earliest possible opportunity. Walker tears down the right, released by De Bruyne. He can’t find anyone with his cross. Sane then has a look down the left, but can’t square it for anyone. The visitors are playing with great intent.
Here we go again! Bristol City get the second half underway, having made a couple of changes. Poor Magnusson is hooked and replaced by Baker, while Diedhiou comes on for Walsh. The hosts immediately gift possession to Aguero, who scuttles off down the inside-left channel and has his shot blocked on the edge of the area. It loops through to Steele.
Half-time reading:
HALF TIME: Bristol City 0-1 Manchester City (agg 1-3)
And that’s that for the first half of the second leg. On balance of play, the scoreline is about right on the night, but Bristol City had battled hard to stay level, and were so close to reaching the break still within touching distance overall. But now they’re two goals adrift on aggregate. It’s a huge ask now. The biggest 45 minutes of Bristol City’s recent history is coming up soon. Manchester City meanwhile will be dreaming of Wembley.
45 min: That was very poor defending by Magnusson, who is a picture of misery. He knows what a costly mistake that was. Ashton Gate falls silent, bar the visitors’ section, who are trilling about a trip to Wembley.
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GOAL! Bristol City 0-1 Manchester City (Sane 43); agg 1-3
Magnusson tries to usher a ball played down the inside-right channel out for a goal kick. Bernardo Silva doesn’t let him, nicks the ball, and plays it back to Sane, who blasts goalwards from eight yards. It’s heading into the net, and though Flint slides in, hoping to hook clear, all the defender can do is help the ball home.
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43 min: Walsh over-elaborates as he looks to shuttle the ball away from his own area. Aguero picks his pocket, and nearly breaks clear down the inside left. He’s hounded out. But no matter, because...
41 min: Manchester City are turning up the heat again. Bernardo Silva dribbles with purpose, in from the right, and works space to shoot. But his low fizzer is blocked and hacked clear.
40 min: Another De Bruyne shot from distance. This one deflects out for a corner on the right. The set piece is half cleared, dropping to Aguero on the edge of the box. Aguero chests down, and attempts a very creative Le Tissieresque volley into the top right. And it’s not as easy as Le Tiss used to make it look. Goal kick.
39 min: De Bruyne plays some gorgeous one-touch stuff down the inside-left, in tandem with David Silva and Sane. Eventually he smashes a shot well wide left of goal. A slight sense of Manchester City frustration.
37 min: A throw for Bristol City down the left, and a chance for Magnusson to Delap one into the mixer. Flint tries to eyebrow the ball goalwards from six yards. Otamendi deflects it slightly. The ball very nearly loops over Bravo on the goalline, but Manchester City breathe again. The hosts are slowly working their way into this match, having held firm during the early onslaught.
35 min: Fernandinho aims a heatseeker towards the top left of Bristol City’s goal from the best part of 30 yards. The home side will be very happy to see the Premier League team resort to nonsense like that.
34 min: Pack, quarterbacking from deep, smacks a lovely ball down the right. Paterson race ahead of a sleeping Zinchenko, and very nearly reaches the ball before Bravo, who does well to race out of his area, intercept and blooter clear.
32 min: City knock it around the middle in the old-fashioned tiki-taka style. Eventually they spring forward through De Bruyne, who earns a corner off Bryan. Sane whips it in from the left. Pack heads clear. This represents a slight lull. Bristol City won’t give a hoot; they’re very much still in this semi-final, despite all Manchester City’s possession and probing.
30 min: Walker, from his right-back position, rolls a diagonal pass towards David Silva in the centre circle. Silva romps forward, and with options right and left, decides to shoot for the bottom-right corner from 25 yards. He drags it wide.
28 min: Sane slips a pass down the left for David Silva, who whips an immediate ball through the six-yard box. Steele fingertips it across the face of his goal, meaning it somehow evades Aguero in the middle. Magnusson is on hand to clear. Bristol City were living very dangerously there.
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26 min: The corner isn’t worth waiting for. Thank goodness for the volleyball interlude. Bristol City launch a counter attack themselves, Brownhill nearly releasing Paterson down the inside-left channel, but there’s way too much juice on the ball.
25 min: Manchester City had been snoozing for a couple of minutes there, but they’ve woken up, and how. Some pretty, high-speed triangles down the left. Sane and David Silva very nearly open the hosts up. It’s just a corner. Which won’t be taken yet because the ball’s up in the stands, and the Bristol City fans are enjoying an impromptu game of volleyball. Yay! Yay! Y-yay! It lasts a while, and it’s a lovely moment of genuine humour.
23 min: ... but De Bruyne can’t work space to shoot. Eventually the ball is worked to Zinchenko on the left, and he flashes a speculative long-distance shot wide of the target.
22 min: Bristol City load the box from the set piece. Smith’s delivery is disappointing, straight into Bravo’s arms. The goalie flings the ball upfield, and Manchester City are quickly on the break ...
21 min: A high ball down the Bristol City right. Fernandinho should head clear, but he allows Reid to bully him out of the way, then spin him brilliantly. Reid makes off for the box, and is tugged back. Fernandinho is booked, and that’s a free kick in a very dangerous position.
20 min: Walsh presents the ball to Aguero on the edge of the Bristol City box. He’s very happy to see the striker over-elaborate when a dangerous shot looked on the cards. Aguero is closed down and the danger is gone.
19 min: More Manchester City passing. But their Bristol namesakes are holding firm, and the Ashton Gate faithful continue to enjoy themselves at volume.
17 min: The biggest cheer of the evening so far, as De Bruyne races down the middle and lays off to the left for Sane. The winger has time and space to shoot from the edge of the area, but in taking one extra stride slips over and skids along on the seat of his pants. Perfect coming timing, in the silent-movie style, but there goes the chance of tonight’s opening goal.
16 min: A bit of respite for Bristol City, who are doing their best to close the visitors down with a diligent pressing game. But it only means Manchester City do their passing thing in the midfield for a while. Possession for the home side still comes at a premium.
14 min: Bristol City are under huge pressure here. Aguero is bundled over by Smith, just to the left of the D. David Silva wedges the free kick into the box, Stones glancing a header wide right from the right-hand corner of the six-yard box. Stones should have done much better. Manchester City will wonder how they’re not leading on the night.
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12 min: De Bruyne bursts down the middle. He slips the ball to the left for David Silva, whose first touch squirts further left to Aguero. The first-leg matchwinner hooks into the centre, and the ball bounces off the top of the crossbar and away. Bernardo Silva earns a corner at the far post which comes to nothing.
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11 min: Walsh is down after getting an accidental boot in the face from Otamendi, the pair sliding in for a 50-50 in the midfield. He’s up and about again after a good soaking with the magic sponge.
9 min: Bernardo Silva has a quick poke around down the right wing. Nothing doing right now. Then there’s some space for the progressive Zinchenko along the left. He hooks into the mixer but out for a goal kick to the right. It’s thoroughly one-sided in terms of possession and territory right now ... but it’s still goalless and as such, the first job’s done for the home side.
7 min: Aguero and Zinchenko play a few pretty triangles down the left. They eventually lose possession, but once again Paterson gifts the ball straight back to the visitors. De Bruyne probes down the wing and pulls back for Fernandinho, who hesitates too long 20 yards from goal, and can’t get a shot away.
5 min: Zinchenko rakes a pass down the left and releases David Silva into space. The flag goes up for offside, Bristol City’s back four pushing up in perfect time. The home team could do with a little bit of possession; this is attack versus defence right now.
4 min: Bernardo Silva waltzes down the right and hits deep. Sane can’t get on the end of the cross, but Paterson treads on the ball as he tries to clear, allowing Sane to attack down the left flank. He earns a corner which leads to nothing. But the home side have started very nervously. You can hardly blame them on the biggest night in Bristol City’s recent history.
2 min: Manchester City stroke it around the back awhile. Walker has a wander down the right, but goes nowhere in particular. Bristol City have hardly touched the ball in these early stages.
29 sec: Stones meets the corner, 12 yards out, but misses the ball and kicks Smith by accident instead. Free kick and that very, very, very early pressure on the home heroes is released.
And we’re off! The visitors, Premier League leaders and tonight’s hot favourites get the ball rolling. De Bruyne with the first kick of the evening. Aguero zips down the left and wins a corner off Smith within 11 seconds. From which ...
The teams are out! Bristol City sport their crisp and classic red shirts. Manchester City eschew their famous sky blue and wear third-choice black; bah! Nice change strip and all, but y’know. Ashton Gate is buzzing, red and white tin-foil flags shaking and shimmering in every corner of this atmospheric ground. We’ll be off in a minute! “Cor, 1909 was the last cup final for Bristol City?” begins Woolie Madden. “It boggles my mind sometimes just how old football is. That was before World War I! I wonder if football fans of the Edwardian era enjoyed a tasty Thai energy drink every now and then? I suppose not, but if they could see us now they’d certainly be in awe of some of the improvements made to the League Cup, such as holding the third-round draw at 4am. Poor, simple folk!”
Pep Guardiola speaks! “I think Bristol City will play the best football they can. We have to play the game. If you think about what you have done, you forget what you have to do. We have to play football, try to score goals and win the game.”
Lee Johnson considers Bristol City’s recent 0-0 draw with Derby County, a result which brought to an end a five-game losing run in all competitions. “It was good. It was a bit of a test for us, a difficult period. There’s an emotional dip players get from a big game back down to the league. But we’ve performed quite well, I don’t think it tells a real story. We will give it a go. If we do score first, the atmosphere will be electric. This could be the biggest night in the club’s history. We’re going to do everything we can to entertain the folks at home and in the stadium.”
Lee Johnson has already said he doesn’t intend to die wondering. With that in mind he’s made two changes to the team sent out at the City of Manchester Stadium two weeks ago. The first is enforced: Luke Steele takes the injured Frank Fielding’s place in goal. The second is a positive switch, defender Nathan Baker benched in favour of midfielder Liam Walsh.
Pep Guardiola names a very strong side. There are five changes to the team he named a fortnight ago. In come Kyle Walker, Nicolás Otamendi, Fernandinho, David Silva and Sergio Agüero. No messing, with full respect paid to the hosts. Then again, he’d named a pretty darn good team in that first leg, too, because look who are dropping to the bench: Danilo, Raheem Sterling, Ilkay Gündoğan, Eliaquim Mangala and Yaya Touré.
The teams
Bristol City: Steele, Smith, Flint, Wright, Magnusson, Brownhill, Pack, Walsh, Bryan, Paterson, Reid.
Subs: Wollocott, Baker, Diédhiou, Taylor, Engvall, Eliasson, Kent.
Manchester City: Bravo, Walker, Stones, Otamendi, Zinchenko, Fernandinho, B Silva, D Silva, De Bruyne, Sané, Agüero.
Subs: Ederson, Danilo, Kompany, Sterling, Gündoğan, Mangala, Touré.
Referee: Graham Scott (Oxfordshire).
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Preamble
April 1909: it’s an awfully long time ago. Nearly 109 years have passed since Bristol City reached the final of the FA Cup, losing 1-0 to the Manchester United of Billy Meredith, Charlie Roberts and Sandy Turnbull. It remains the only major showpiece occasion in the entire history of the Robins. They came close to reaching another in 1971, but Spurs knocked them out of the League Cup semi-finals. They came close in the League Cup again in 1989, but Nottingham Forest did for them that time. And so here they are now, hoping it’s third time lucky in English football’s second cup.
It’s only Manchester City in the way. The runaway Premier League leaders, English football’s champions-elect, a team that can call on the brilliance of Kevin De Bruyne, Sergio Aguero, Raheem Sterling and Leroy Sane. God speed, Bristol City ... except Lee Johnson’s spirited side really did push Pep Guardiola’s team all the way in the first leg at the Etihad, so they’ve got more than just pie-in-the-sky hope. Another big performance, like the one that put out Manchester United in the quarters, could see Bristol City’s second major final become a reality. After their 2-1 defeat in the first leg of this semi, they need to win tonight, bottom line. They may need to rely on away goals (which only count after extra time) or perhaps penalty kicks. But they’ve proved they have what it takes to make it.
Of course, Manchester City - brilliant Manchester City, chasing an unprecedented quadruple - have other ideas. A rambunctious semi-final is almost guaranteed. It’s David versus Goliath! It’s cup football at it’s best! It’s on!
Kick off: 7.45pm GMT.
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