WATCH: Basel Wins 2nd Leg, but Man City Through to UCL Quarterfinals
Manchester City didn't leave much drama to be sorted in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 vs. FC Basel, and it showed in a surprise 2-1 loss at the Etihad, which was still more than enough for the English side to go through.
Pep Guardiola's side was overwhelming in a 4-0 first-leg win in Switzerland, with Ilkay Gundogan goals book-ending scores from Bernardo Silva and Sergio Aguero. It would have taken a collapse of historic proportions for Man City not to advance, and even though Pep Guardiola's side falling at home is a shock, the 5-2 aggregate win has City onto the quarterfinals.
Leroy Sane threatened early for Man City, with the in-form German international forcing a save off a close-range chance from the left in the fifth minute.
The opener came a few minutes later, though. Gabriel Jesus finished off a gorgeous sequence, with Sane feeding Bernardo Silva out right, where he then cross to the back post for Jesus to tap home.
It probably should have been 2-0 on the day two minutes later, when the sizzling Sane crossed for Bernardo Silva in the center of the box, only for the Portuguese playmaker to whiff on the first-time attempt.
Basel pulled even on the day in the 17th minute, when Mohamed Elyounoussi finished from the center of the box. The goal, while it certainly won't please Guardiola, doesn't do much to the ramifications of who goes through, as Man City still carried a 5-1 aggregate lead.
Basel managed to take the lead on the day in the 72nd minute through Michael Lang, beating Claudio Bravo with a near-post blast to make it 2-1 after Elyounoussi set him up.
Here were the starting lineups for both teams:
The quarterfinal draw for the Champions League will take place on Friday, March 16, with no restrictions placed in which teams can be paired with one another. Real Madrid and Liverpool became the first two teams to punch their tickets, doing so on Tuesday.
