We already told you about Michael Gspurning’s role in last night’s scoreless draw in Seattle, where Real Salt Lake had a man advantage for more than a half.
He talks about the result here, where you’ll also catch a quick glimpse of all his saves, including the sneaky little ball that almost slipped by Seattle’s ‘keeper two minutes into stoppage time.
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This video is no longer available. Click here to watch more NBC Sports videos!Champions of Europe: Now they can say that. Manchester City won the UEFA Champions League to wrap up a historic treble with a 1-0 win over Inter Milan in Istanbul on Saturday.
[ HISTORY: Manchester City join exclusive club as latest treble winners ]
It wasn’t vintage as City as Simon Inzaghi’s Inter put up a vintage defensive display, full of bite and fury, but Rodri’s vicious strike deep in the second half put City in the driver’s seat.
The Premier League winners three times running had an FA Cup under their belt after beating Manchester United on June 3 and the final jewel in their treble crown arrived Saturday.
[ MORE: Player ratings: Manchester City, champions of nearly everything ]
It’s the second treble for Pep Guardiola, who pulled it off with Barcelona in 2008-09. The achievement gives heated rivals United domestic company on the treble stage right down the road.
Manchester City captain Ilkay Gundogan:
“Unbelievable. Difficult to put in words. Today we made history.”
“It was probably a 50-50 game. We feel very fortunate it was for us. We knew everyone was talking about the treble. The pressure was there, but this team is built to handle the pressure in the best possible way.”
2nd minute: Inter allowing City the ball and setting up with a 2-3-3-1 shape.
7th minute: Some hard fouls from Inter on Man City, underlined by Francesco Acerbi’s sliding takedown of Erling Haaland. Understandably just fouls but Inter opening the day daring referee Szymon Marciniak, the World Cup Final boss, to show a yellow.
12th minute: Is that a little rust from Ederson under the press of Lautaro Martinez? Inter continues to show some bite early and Jack Grealish is getting a familiar amount of physical opposition.
18th minute: Terrific discipline from Inter who’s been able to oscillate between keeping their shape and aggressive pressing. There’s width there but no regular spaces. If they can keep this up, it’s on for them.
29th minute: Haaland snaps a left-footed shot from a tight angle and Andre Onana stands firm, dipping his arm to block the shot. It stays in play and City put it out for an Inter goal kick. Kevin De Bruyne then lashes a bounding ball into Onana’s arms, and Grealish scuds a tepid effort to the keeper.
36th minute: INJURY SUB. And it’s a big one. De Bruyne can’t go on and it’ll be Phil Foden stepping into the fold with the score 0-0 and 10+ minutes left in the first half. And it’ll be eerily familiar to City supporters, who saw this in the club’s last UCL Final and will hope for a better outcome.
HALFTIME: City was definitely a bit better but the margins are close and Inter will like its chances even more now that De Bruyne has exited the contest. City predictably had 62 percent of the ball and edged the xG battle that half but Inter took four of the game’s seven shots and Onana made the best stop when he got his arm to Haaland’s rip around the half-hour mark. It’s all there for Inter… and City.
50th minute: It’s still City in possession without many obvious openings. Ironically, Onana makes an error to threaten some excitement, but Bernardo Silva is well handled by Inter and Federico Dimarco clears the danger.
56th minute: Enter this storyline –> Former Man United and Chelsea forward Romelu Lukaku has been in scoring form and he’s entering for Edin Dzeko.
68th minute: GOOOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLL!! It’s RODRI and it’s 1-0 Manchester City! The treble is on, for the moment as Rodri runs onto a loose ball after Akanji slipped Bernardo Silva on goal and the Portuguese’s cross is blocked into space. Wow. A powerful rip and City’s in front.
71st minute: This should be level! Dimarco pops a header off the cross bar and then his follow-up header doesn’t get to the line because it zips off the leg of his teammate Lukaku. He might’ve been offside if VAR had to take a look at it but warning bells for City who almost fell victim to the honeymoon period after scoring a goal.
😫❌⚽️ ¡Remate de Dimarco al travesaño y luego Lukaku INCREÍBLE le tapa el gol a su compañero!
🔴 EN VIVO por @Univision, TUDN, https://t.co/OmeLOvzglE y app
Lays, Sigue Brillando; Lays Stay Golden#ChampionsEnTUDN 🏆 | #UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/gsM7KzlJ84
— TUDN USA (@TUDNUSA) June 10, 2023
77th minute: Foden nearly makes it two! Onana’s on the scene and we’re set for a crazy final few minutes in Turkey.
88th minute: Oh, the minutes are ticking down now. There shouldn’t be too much stoppage time in Istanbul… and WHAT A SAVE! Ederson makes a close-range stop on Lukaku and Ruben Dias gets the rebound wide of the near post. Exhales all over the blue side of Manchester.
90th minute: Lukaku’s got a chance to beat Ederson again, but he drags his left-footed effort wide of the far post. FIVE minutes stoppage time ahead.
FULL TIME: MANCHESTER CITY HAVE WON THE TREBLE.
🔵⚪️⚽️ ¡Gooool de @ManCity!
🔵⚪️⚽️ ¡Gooool de @ManCity!
🔵⚪️⚽️ ¡Gooool de @ManCity!😍 El golpeo de pelota perfecto que tiene Rodri ✨✨✨
🔴 EN VIVO por @Univision, TUDN, https://t.co/OmeLOvzglE y app
Lays, Sigue Brillando; Lays Stay Golden#ChampionsEnTUDN 🏆 | #UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/3xyvcurrZv
— TUDN USA (@TUDNUSA) June 10, 2023
Dates: 3pm ET June 10, 2023
Online: Live updates via NBCSports.com
How to watch: TUDN, Paramount+
Manchester United won the Premier League, FA Cup, and Champions League in 1998-99.
Sir Alex Ferguson’s Red Devils are the lone Premier League club to win it.
That’s was it until Saturday.
It’s now 10 times in history that a team won its domestic league, top domestic cup, and the European Cup.
Bayern Munich and Barcelona have each done it twice, with Bayern doing it in 2012-13 and 2019-20 and Barca pulling it off in 2008-09 and 2014-15.
Celtic was the first to win a treble, doing it in 1966-67, while Ajax was the next in 1971-72.
PSV Eindhoven then won it in 1987-88 before Man United made it happen 11 years later. Inter Milan is the only Italian team to pull it off, winning in 2009-10.
(UEFA.com)
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Man City (-250) vs Inter Milan (+625) | Draw over 120 mins (+380)
Over 2.5 goals (-160). Under 2.5 goals (+110)
Joe Prince-Wright: Man City 2-1 Inter Milan
Andy Edwards: Man City 3-1 Inter Milan
Nick Mendola: Man City 2-0 Inter Milan
OUT: None
🩵 TEAM NEWS 🩵
XI | Ederson, Akanji, Stones, Dias, Ake, Rodrigo, Gundogan (C), De Bruyne, Bernardo, Grealish, Haaland
SUBS | Ortega Moreno, Carson, Walker, Phillips, Laporte, Alvarez, Gomez, Mahrez, Perrone, Foden, Palmer, Lewis#ManCity | #UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/6eYE8aTGTH
— Manchester City (@ManCity) June 10, 2023
OUT: Dalbert.
I nostri 1️⃣1️⃣⚫🔵 per #ManCityInter 🔝
Forza ragazzi 💫#UCLFinal #UCL #ForzaInter pic.twitter.com/6a2dJZmXJL— Inter (@Inter) June 10, 2023
Manchester City are not only the champions of England, winners of the FA Cup and champions of Europe, but Pep Guardiola’s side (perhaps his greatest) will now be forever remembered as treble winners.
It’s an elite club, by the way, of teams that have won their domestic league, top domestic cup, and the European Cup.
Nine Now, 10 times in history has a team won the treble and once now, twice it has been done by a Premier League club.
[ MORE: Recalling Zlatan’s “unicorn” career ]
The Premier League title was captured via 12 straight victories from late February to late May, as Arsenal collapsed and let their eight-point lead slip. Five titles in six seasons. Ho-hum.
The FA Cup final was a tricky, tricky prospect, as Manchester United — the only other English club to achieve the treble feat — stood in their way at Wembley Stadium a week ago. Once again, for the third time since 2010, sky blue ribbons adorned the famous trophy. Once again, been there, done that.
Saturday’s UEFA Champions League final proved just as challenging, with Inter Milan fighting tooth and nail with a fantastic defensive gameplan. Enter: Rodri’s rocket. For the first time in club history, Manchester City are champions of Europe, and for the third time in three weeks they lift a trophy as fireworks erupt behind them and confetti rains down upon them.
For more treble trivia, head below the jump.
Bayern Munich and Barcelona have each done it twice, with Bayern doing it in 2012-13 and 2019-20 and Barca pulling it off in 2008-09 and 2014-15.
Celtic was the first to win a treble, doing it in 1966-67, while Ajax was the next in 1971-72.
PSV Eindhoven then won it in 1987-88 before Man United made it happen 11 years later. Inter Milan is the only Italian team to pull it off, winning in 2009-10.
Edit: Add Manchester City, 2022-23, to the list.
(UEFA.com)
Manchester City are the champions of Europe after their triumph in the 2022-23 UEFA Champions League final, a hard-fought victory over Inter Milan on Saturday.
[ RECAP: Manchester City complete treble, win first Champions League ]
Who stood out (for better and for worse) as the Premier League champions and FA Cup winners added the final piece of the puzzle to their historic treble?
GK – Ederson: 7 – Six saves, including a critical late stop just ahead of the goal line as Romelu Lukaku looked certain to equalize and send the final to extra-time.
CB – Manuel Akanji: 5.5 – The game nearly swung away from Manchester City when Akanji fell asleep in the 58th minute and Lautaro Martinez was permitted to race into the penalty area unobstructed. Fortunately for the Swiss international, Ederson soared off his line and made the shooting angle far too tight.
CB – Ruben Dias: 6.5
CB – Nathan Ake: 6.5
DM – John Stones: 7.5 – Alongside Bernardo Silva (more on him in a moment), Stones played the roll of Pep Guardiola’s defensive Swiss Army knife masterfully
DM – Rodri: 8 – Aside from generally being the best midfield anchor in the world, Rodri packs a mean right foot when the ball falls to him at the edge of the penalty area. When he struck the ball in the 68th minute, there was little doubt he would put it on target.
RW – Bernardo Silva: 7.5 – Few attackers in the world, if any, press as effectively and destructively as Bernardo, who oftentimes renders the entire left side of the opposition attack useless. He did it again on Saturday, with bombarding extraordinaire Federico Dimarco held to just one key pass in the waning moments of the game (he averaged 1.8 per game in Serie A this season and 1.5 in the Champions League as a key creator).
CM – Ilkay Gundogan: 7 – In what might be the final appearance of his Manchester City career, Gundogan was typically silky smooth in possession, even as Inter Milan clogged the middle of the field and made life rather difficult.
CM – Kevin De Bruyne: 5.5 – Another bitterly disappointing Champions League final for De Bruyne, who left the 2021 final with a fractured nose and orbital bone after 60 minutes, and lasted just 35 minutes on Saturday after pulling his hamstring midway through the first half.
CM (Sub 36′) – Phil Foden: 6
LW – Jack Grealish: 6
CF – Erling Haaland: 6 – By his otherworldly standards, it was a rather quiet game from Haaland, who had just one scoring chance (and one shot) which he hit straight into the chest of Andre Onana.
We are all set for a very summer transfer window, as the latest transfer news keeps flooding in and plenty of big names are expected to be on the move.
[ VIDEO: Premier League analysis ]
The 2023 summer transfer window opens on June 14, 2023 for Premier League clubs and it will close at 6pm ET on September 1, 2023.
From superstars like Declan Rice, Harry Kane, and Jude Bellingham in-demand, to speculation around the future of Lionel Messi and plenty of money set to be spent by the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool, this will be a fun summer.
Plus there are Americans to watch as Tyler Adams, Christian Pulisic, Brenden Aaronson, and Weston McKennie are all high-profile USMNT players who could make a summer move.
[ TRANSFER NEWS: Arsenal | Liverpool | Chelsea | Tottenham | Man City | Man United ]
Below we roundup the latest transfer news, done deals, reports and rumors and give our analysis on what’s going on as Joe Prince-Wright (JPW), Nicholas Mendola (NM) and Andy Edwards (AE) will guide you through a hectic last few weeks of the window.
A near-perfect signing for Aston Villa, who has announced the capture of Belgian international Youri Tielemans.
A surprise signing by Leicester City when he made his Premier League debut, the move is a big win for Unai Emery’s Villans.
The metronome with flair to spare will join a buzzworthy attack that feature Ollie Watkins, Emi Buendia, and Jacob Ramsey.
Aston Villa is delighted to announce that the club has reached an agreement to sign Youri Tielemans.
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) June 10, 2023
Federico Chiesa wants to matter more to his team’s success than he does at Juventus, and two Premier League clubs are looking to give him that chance.
Both Arsenal and Newcastle are being linked with the 25-year-old winger/attacking midfielder, and a report in Italy says the Gunners have already made contact with Juve about the player’s availability.
Chiesa could cost as much as $70 million, quite a fee for a player coming off a part-time campaign that netted two goals and five assists.
The 40-times capped Italy star hasn’t hit the goals and assists heights of his final season in Fiorentina and debut campaign with Juve, but the advanced stats still note a supremely-gifted player.
That is quite a fee, though, considering he cost under $50 million when he made the switch from La Viola to The Old Lady. (NM)
In perhaps the least surprising bit of news ahead of the transfer window, West Ham chairman David Sullivan revealed on Thursday he is “99 percent” sure that captain Declan Rice will leave the club this summer. Rice has been heavily linked with a move to Premier League runners-up Arsenal, as well as boyhood club Chelsea.
“We gave the promise last summer that if he gave us his all, we would let him leave the club,” Sullivan said. “It’s a fair and proper thing to do.”
In what will likely be his final act as a West Ham player, Rice lifted the Europa Conference League trophy after the Hammers’ final triumph over Fiorentina on Wednesday, ending a 43-year major trophy drought in dramatic fashion.
Christian Pulisic has been linked with Juventus and AC Milan as things have not gone according to plan at Chelsea over the past season-plus.
But that doesn’t mean he’s absolutely skipping town this summer, Pulisic told reporters in California this week.
“Obviously, it’s been an interesting journey at club level for me. I thought it was a great couple years and the last couple years just haven’t gone at all how I’ve planned them to be,” Pulisic said. “And right now my focus is obviously here with the national team. I’m just excited to get back playing and just enjoy myself and do what I love to do out on the field. And from there, this summer, we’re obviously going to have to see what happens. It’s obviously very early. As of right now I’m a Chelsea player and I plan to go back. But a lot of things can happen. A lot of things can change.” (NM)
Harry Kane scoring goals in a white shirt is very familiar, but might the England and Tottenham striker do so next year in another country?
A Marca report says Real Madrid is ready to pay over $100 million to Tottenham for the veteran forward, who scored 30 goals this Premier League season.
Kane as it stands now is in heavy pursuit of the Premier League record for goals but he’s also getting deeper into his career without a trophy and Real certainly has a reputation for collecting trophies.
Throw in the fact that Spurs are not going to be competing outside of England this year, and that Daniel Levy is thought to be leery of selling to another Premier League rival, and might Madrid make sense for Harry? (NM)
Reports from Fabrizio Romano say that breakthroughs are near for Chelsea and Liverpool when it comes to marquee midfield additions.
Chelsea is nearing a deal to acquire standout Sporting Lisbon midfielder Manuel Ugarte for around $65 million, with Romano saying there are “key hours ahead” in the race to fend off Paris Saint-Germain.
And the father/agent for Brighton star Alexis Mac Allister is expected to arrive in Liverpool to hammer out final personal terms between the Reds and the World Cup winner. Then it’ll go to Brighton and Liverpool, with a fee not thought to be an issue. (NM)
Wolfsburg defender Micky van de Ven has had a dream to play at Anfield since attending a game there as a youngster. An excellent ball progressor, Van de Ven is viewed as a $40 million target and reports have said Jurgen Klopp is an admirer. So it’s a mutual appreciation society.
“I once went to the Liverpool stadium with my dad,” he told AZ WAZ. “That was over Christmas on Boxing Day. Liverpool vs Arsenal. That was madness. Then when ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ comes [on] – that’s a goose bump moment, that was very cool. It’s a dream to play there.”
The 6-foot-4 Van de ven turned 22 in April and has served as the captain of the Dutch U-21 national team. He moved from Volendam to Wolfsburg in the summer of 2021 and became a full-time starter in his second season, occasionally swinging to left back. (NM)
According to The Athletic, Manchester United have been in ‘detailed talks’ over the signing of Randal Kolo Muani and Rasmus Hojlund. The young forward duo are both being chased by the Red Devils as Erik ten Hag wants to add one of them and a more experienced striker. Per the report, John Murtaugh has spoken to both Eintracht Frankfurt and Atalanta multiple times about Kolo Muani and Hojlund respectively and United are hoping to move on with chasing summer targets despite uncertainty surrounding their ownership status as the Glazer Family continue to explore the option of a full or partial sale of the Premier League giants. Kolo Muani and Hojlund both fit the mould for the type of player Erik ten Hag wants and if United can land one of them and somehow pull off an unlikely move for Harry Kane (unlikely due to Daniel Levy’s unwillingness to do business) then it will be a heck of a summer for the Red Devils. (JPW)
According to a report from The Times, Josko Gvardiol is at the top of Pep Guardiola’s wish-list this summer. The Croatian defender, 21, is thought to be valued at $108 million by RB Leipzig and although the German giants don’t want to sell, it is believed Gvardiol is keen on a move to City. The report says that City plan on moving on at least one of their center backs and all of John Stones, Ruben Dias, Manuel Akanji and Nathan Ake seem certain to stay with Aymeric Laporte perhaps the most likely to move on. Gvardiol has long been linked with a Premier League move and his power in the air as well as his pace and ability on the ball is a perfect fit for the Premier League and City. Josko Gvardiol also got a good look at City this season as Leipzig were hammered by Erling Haaland and Co. in the UEFA Champions League. We’ve seen this season how Guardiola’s side dominated the final months of the season not only due to their incredible goalscoring exploits but largely thanks to a solid defensive unit. Having mobile center backs who can slot in at full back and step into midfield is key to the way they play. Gvardiol can do that. (JPW)
A report from ESPN says that Manchester United have moved to the front of the queue when it comes to signing Mason Mount this summer. Mount, 24, has just one year left on his contract at Chelsea and is expected to move on this summer. Mount has been linked with moves to United and Liverpool but the report says that Mount is keen on heading to United although the Red Devils have some reservations over the $75 million transfer fee Chelsea are asking for. Per the report, clubs are waiting for later in the summer to try and buy Mount as they known Chelsea will have to move players on due to the enormous squad Mauricio Pochettino has inherited and will have to trim. Does Mount to United make sense? It does. He can slot in anywhere in Erik ten Hag’s midfield and is the perfect kind of player to add depth to their squad and be a great 12th man or step in when key midfielders are injured or need a rest. His time at Chelsea is clearly coming to an end and even though Mount has struggled this season at Chelsea, his quality is proven in the Premier League in recent years and on the international stage with England. (JPW)
Bild says that the Reds are turning to the Bundesliga to address their midfield. Jurgen Klopp will turn to Borussia Monchengladbach’s Kouadio “Manu” Kone this summer, as Liverpool has reportedly told the player that it will be approaching Gladbach. Kone, 22, has been linked with several big clubs including a late March report regarding Manchester United interest. A ball progressor who reads the game very well, Kone is said to carry a price tag of more than $40 million. (NM)
Chelsea are in talks to sign Manuel Ugarte, according to Fabrizio Romano. The Uruguayan and Sporting Lisbon holding midfielder is admired by new Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino. Romano says PSG are in the race for Ugarte too. Ugarte, 22, is exactly the kind of player Pochettino loves as he will dig in, win the ball and get it to others to create. Alongside Enzo Fernandez, Ugarte will add extra defensive stability to Chelsea’s midfield and improve the balance of their squad. Our partners in the UK at Sky Sports says that Ugarte has a $65 million release clause in his contract. (JPW)
Our partners at Sky Germany say that Bayern Munich are very interested in signing Declan Rice from West Ham. Bayern, who won their 11-straight Bundesliga title on the final day of the season, have made Rice, 24, their top target as Thomas Tuchel is a huge fan of the England international.
Here is more from Sky Germany reporter Uli Kohler: “Tuchel had a phone call with Rice. I don’t know what they were talking about – maybe money, maybe about what he can expect here [in Munich]. Bayern is keen on him. They need a strong defensive midfielder but everybody knows there are a lot of other clubs interested in him. Bayern could afford it. They would like to keep it below €100m [£86.4m]. They have to look at their accounts very closely but I think they can afford it.”
Rice has long been linked with a move to Arsenal or Manchester United but it is believed that West Ham’s asking price for their captain and central midfielder (who is out of contract next summer) is putting up Premier League clubs. Bayern appear to be ready to pay close to the $120 million West Ham want for Rice. Is he worth it? He is. There is perhaps no better two-way central midfielder under the age of 25 in Europe and Rice’s ceiling is extremely high. (JPW)
A report from our partners in the UK at Sky Sports says that Manchester United are trying to sign a trio of England internationals: Harry Kane, Mason Mount and Declan Rice.
“Manchester United will try to sign Harry Kane, Declan Rice and Mason Mount this summer. Their No. 1 target is Kane. He is the player Erik ten Hag wants most. It is unlikely they will sign all three players and everything depends on what happens with the takeover. Kane, Rice and Mount are exactly the kind of characters Ten Hag wants in his dressing room.”
It is clear Kane will be the top target for United as Erik ten Hag has spoken about signing a new striker and that is their main transfer need. It is tough to see Tottenham selling Kane to a direct top four rival in Manchester United for anything less than $130 million, even with Kane’s contract winding down. That said, do you take that money this summer and use it to rebuild? Or let him go for free in the summer of 2024?
Next up, Declan Rice will surely be their next main target, as all three of these players have just one year left on their contract. Rice, 24, is just the type of player United need alongside Casemiro in central midfield and the England international has become one of the best two-way central midfielders in Europe under the age of 25. Rice’s close friend is Mason Mount and the latter clearly doesn’t want to sign a new contract at Chelsea, so he could be the cheaper option of the three. All of this hinges on Manchester United’s takeover but if, as expected, they qualify for the Champions League, then signing two of these three players would be a huge upgrade on their current options and gives them quality, depth and experience in midfield and attack. First choice would be Kane and Rice but Kane and Mount would still be pretty decent. (JPW)
