City's dream of a Double Treble is no more... a bad news for Arsenal & Liverpool

A few minutes before kick-off, a flag depicting a double-decker bus began to be passed along the Manchester City fans behind one of the goals at the Etihad Stadium. It had Phil Foden’s face emblazoned on the side next to the figure 192, the number of the bus that runs from Manchester, through Foden’s home town, Stockport, to Hazel Grove.

There was something else inscribed on it, too. ‘Wembley Express’ was written on it in big capital letters, a reference not to City’s appearance there on Saturday in the FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea but a nod to the fact that the Champions League final will take place in north west London on June 1.

It turns out City won’t be there to play in it. Real Madrid rang the bell a few stops early at The Etihad last night and booted City off that bus before it had left east Manchester.

After an attritional tie that was dominated by a dogged Madrid defence and finished 1-1 after extra time, it took a dramatic roller-coaster of a penalty shoot-out to decide this quarter-final but Madrid prevailed.

City went into an early lead in that shoot out but a terrible, chipped penalty from Bernardo Silva that sailed softly into the hands of Andriy Lunin changed the momentum of that part of the contest and Antonio Rudiger, Madrid’s titan throughout the match, kept his nerve to stroke home the final kick.

And so City’s dream of a Double Treble is no more. And their dream of becoming the only team other than Madrid to retain the Champions League is no more. All of which may be bad news for Arsenal and Liverpool. Because now City will throw everything they have at winning the Premier League title for an unprecedented fourth time in a row.

It was a heartbreaking defeat for City who had won 28 and drawn two of