“Asking for trouble” – Luca Toni highlights what Manchester City star did ahead of brawl with Atletico Madrid
Former Italy striker Luca Toni believes Phil Foden was to blame for the brawl that took place between Manchester City and Atletico Madrid. The two teams faced off in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-finals on April 13.
Manchester City progressed to the semi-finals thanks to a 1-0 aggregate win over the Spanish side. The goalless second leg at the Wanda Metropolitano was full of controversy.
It was a vintage performance from Diego Siemone's team, who were clearly determined to rattle the Premier League leaders. Foden appeared to receive extra special treatment from Atletico defenders, and the young Englishman was forced to play much of the encounter wearing a bandage on his head.
Some passion from @PhilFoden 👏👏 https://t.co/cKkFiNb6KF
With tensions boiling over, a vicious challenge from Felipe on Foden earned the Brazilian a second yellow card. This chain of events prompted chaos on the pitch, with well over twenty players and staff involved in the scrap.
Eagle-eyed fans noticed the Manchester City midfielder's reaction to the challenge. He first made the most of the incident, before rolling back onto the pitch to ensure the game couldn't carry on.
Former Bayern Munich and Fiorentina striker Toni believed the 21-year-old knew what he was doing, though did recognize the poor Felipe challenge.
He said on Amazon Prime Video as per Football Italia:
“The foul was awful, Felipe was wrong and I don’t even know why he complained. He knows there is VAR and he deliberately kicked his opponent.
"However, Foden was asking for trouble. He was off the pitch but then rolled back on. These are bad images, it would be better not to vent anger like that, but I know it’s not easy.
“They were all wrong, this aggressivity brings to making mistakes sometimes.”
Looking back at it, Foden has done very well here. I'm sure it hurt, but he certainly "made the most" of that kick from Felipe. Which got Felipe sent off, caused Savic to lose his mind, and triggered a brawl that interrupted the momentum Atletico Madrid were building. Huge move.
Pep Guardiola claims Manchester City are in 'big trouble'
Following the fiery European encounter, Manchester City boss Guardiola claimed his side have numerous injury problems ahead of their run-in to the end of the season.
The Cityzens face Liverpool on Saturday in the FA Cup semi-final. However, the Spaniard may be without Kyle Walker and Kevin De Bruyne after they both limped off in Madrid.
As per Sky Sports, Guardiola told BT Sport:
"We are in big trouble. We cannot forget we played three days ago a tough game against Liverpool. We came here, we have a lot of injuries.
"I don't know what will happen in the next weeks but today we are going to celebrate. It is the third time in Manchester City's history we are in the semi-finals of the Champions League, and it is a big success for us to be there."
Phil Foden laughing at Diego Simeone losing his head. Iconic. https://t.co/zHOY6sGCrG