Philipp Lahm: Real Madrid v Manchester City feels like a final as two dominant teams meet

Repeat of last season’s semi-final and the teams’ routes to the last four suggest Europe’s other big teams need to catch up

Rodrygo of Real Madrid. Pic: Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

Iwas looking forward to Bayern Munich against Manchester City. In April, when the best meet, you expect exciting matches. But I was disappointed. City managed the 3-0 advantage from the first leg. Bayern were not able to challenge their opponents.

Now I’m looking forward to Real Madrid against City. It’s the semi-final from last year, and back then it was the highlight of the season, with a narrow winner at the last. Again, it’s the two strongest clubs in the Champions League, which says a lot about Europe’s football.