Our 3️⃣ points as Man City clinch first UCL and historic treble | OneFootball

Manchester City are Champions League winners and the treble is now over the line.

Here are our three points from the 2023 Champions League final …

Rodri the worthiest of winners

It may well have been Rodri’s sloppiest performance for months but nobody, nobody, deserved that winning moment more than him after he was left on the bench for the 2021 final and has delivered a campaign to remember.

The midfielder started for the 52nd time this season — the second highest number of starts an outfielder has ever made in a season under Pep Guardiola — and he struggled, with John Stones playing further forward than usual and City not quite getting their passing game going.

Still, he appeared with a massive moment just when it seemed Guardiola’s side were going to struggle for a goal.

Erling Haaland didn’t get going as he went a fifth game in a row without scoring, Kevin De Bruyne was substituted injured before the break, so somebody had to step up.

Only right that it was Rodri, arguably City’s most important player all season long. Obviously you’d say that is Haaland but they were brilliant last season without the Norwegian too. No doubt they’ve gone to a new level now but Rodri has now been integral in two successful City sides.

There’s no better holding midfielder in world football right now.

Oh, Romelu Lukaku

For all the goals, all the big transfers, and even the trophies — he’s been crucial in a Serie A win and a Coppa Italia win — it’s hard to escape the feeling Romelu Lukaku has been just inches away from a truly spectacular career.

The Belgian has an incredible record wherever he’s been but he really could have been a hero on Saturday and made good on his potential with one of the game’s undeniably enormous trophies.

First, with Ederson sprawling, Lukaku inadvertently blocked a potential equaliser from team-mate Federico Di Marco.

Then he snatched at a couple of half-chances.

And then, finally, with a minute of normal time remaining he had the chance of the game, a free header from five yards out with the whole goal to aim at, only to find Ederson’s standing leg.

It just wasn’t to be.

These finals just aren’t one-sided

Plenty of people expected a walkover. Gareth Bale predicted a 5-0 win! Those things just don’t happen in these games and teams don’t reach the Champions League final by mistake.

Inter gave as good as they got, outshooting City and having arguably the two biggest chances of the entire match after falling behind.

It looked like City were a bit nervy as big favourites, Guardiola shuffled the pack a little, as is his wont, with John Stones’ pushed into a more advanced role from right-back rather than starting at centre-back and tucking in alongside John Stones, and Inter were by no means overawed.

This was the fourth 1-0 win in a row in a Champions League final and it’s now 19 years since a Champions League final was won by more than two goals within the 90 minutes.