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Sports

Tottenham knock out Manchester City in dramatic fashion

Felix Tamsut
April 17, 2019

Pep Guardiola's quadruple dreams came to an emphatic end as his side were knocked out of the Champions League. North London side Tottenham were the victors in a game defined by goals and VAR decisions.

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Champions League Manchester City - Tottenham Hotspur
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/J. Super

Tottenham were hoping their 1-0 advantage from the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal tie with Manchester City would hold up when they visited Etihad Stadium on Wednesday.

What came next was a Champions League spectacle to behold.

Four goals in 12 minutes

Four minutes in, City went on top through Raheem Sterling, but the visitors drew level just three minutes later as Son Heung-min's low strike flew in off the leg of Manchester City's goalkeeper Ederson.

Son doubled his scoring tally in the 10th minute, receiving a pass from teammate Christian Erikson before curving a ball beautifully into the far corner.

Raheem Sterling
Raheem Sterling scored twice for Manchester CityImage: Reuters/A. Yates

But Tottenham's lead did not last long. Only one minute after Son's second, Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero played a pass to Bernardo Silva, and the ensuing shot from the Portuguese midfielder deflected off Danny Rose straight into the net, leveling the score at two a piece.

City retook the lead in the 20th minute after Sterling tapped in a cross from Kevin De Bryune's from close range. The home side headed into halftime with a 3-2 lead.

The hosts also struck first in the second half, with De Bruyne the setting up a powerful shot from Aguero that left Tottenham's goalkeeper Hugo Lloris no chance. The Argentinian's goal gave Manchester City a 4-3 aggregate lead in the tie, which meant Pep Guardiola's side just needed to avoid more drama and a spot in the semifinals was theirs.

VAR drama

But that turned out not to be the case. Substitute Fernando Llorente capitalized on a Tottenham corner, scoring from close range in the 73rd minute, leveling the aggregate score at 4-4 and restoring the visitor's away goals advantage. Referee Cuneyt Cakir confirmed the goal with help from the VAR screen on the sideline, deeming the Spanish striker did not handle the ball before his goal.

Manchester City's Ilkay Gündogan
Ilkay Gündogan reacts to Raheem Sterling's goal being disallowedImage: Reuters/P. Noble

The drama did not end there. Three minutes into added time, Sterling thought he had scored the decisive for City. However, his goal was disallowed after the video assistant referee deemed Aguero offside in the buildup. 

In the end, Tottenham advanced to the semifinals on the away goals, where they will face Dutch giants Ajax. Manchester City, who were attempting to win four trophies in one season, are now left to focus on domestic competitions.

Liverpool's Roberto Firmino
Roberto Firmino (left) gives a thumbs up after his goalImage: Reuters/Action Images/A. Boyers

Liverpool ease past Porto

Elsewhere, Jürgen Klopp's Liverpool defeated Porto to reach the Champions League semifinals for the second straight year. Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Virgil van Dijk all found the back of the net for the Reds, while Eder Militao scored a consolation goal for the Portuguese side.

Liverpool, who currently sit atop the English Premier League table, are no set to face Barcelona. The Spanish giants eliminated Manchester United from the competition on Tuesday.