Pep Guardiola noted it ahead of Manchester City’s visit from Real Madrid. His side would need to overcome hardships against gnarled, streetwise opponents if they wanted to reach the Champions League final. Matches of this magnitude are rarely straight sprints to the finish.

“We have the desire to play against them and take on this incredible test, and we want to improve,” Guardiola said in his pre-match press conference. “We are going to suffer together and then, when we attack, do it as well as possible.”

Suffering to succeed is one of Guardiola’s mantras at City. He mentions it a lot, including before the Champions League final defeat to Chelsea and again ahead of a group-stage scuffle with Paris Saint-Germain this season. Each time – in Porto, Paris, and Tuesday’s 4-3 first-leg win on home turf – Guardiola’s warnings were justified.

And in Real Madrid, a team that habitually drags itself over the line from precarious positions in domestic and European football, there might not be better tutors for City on the art of suffering.

Karim Benzema and Luka Modric thrived on adversity at the Etihad Stadium. City had just poured forward twice and could’ve made it 3-0 through the efforts from Riyad Mahrez and Phil Foden. A response from Real Madrid was required. It was no surprise that Benzema – a player whose obscene goal output leaves his excellent buildup play somewhat underappreciated – first stepped up. He drove into a channel populated by Bernardo Silva, Rodri, and Ruben Dias to win a corner from a scenario that, initially, seemed harmless.

Benzema ran to the corner flag, quickly exchanged passes with fellow veteran Toni Kroos, and wrapped his foot around a delivery toward the direction of David Alaba. The defender was understandably disappointed he didn’t at least nod the ball on target. City didn’t have enough time to get ready for the set-piece properly, and Ederson appeared beaten at his far post.

In merely 20 seconds, Benzema pulled his sinking team from a rising tide. It’s brief periods like this that can turn the direction of a game. That’s how battle-hardened players respond to setbacks, especially those of Benzema’s experience.

Modric – perhaps football’s neatest personification of Muhammad Ali’s line, “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee” – also pushed his 5-foot-8 frame to its limits to help his side reduce the first of the three two-goal deficits it faced in the first leg. Modric determinedly flung himself into the air to win a header in midfield before a Vinicius Junior shot was deflected wide. He later expertly spread himself for a block tackle on Mahrez, banking on a deflection that could trigger an attack for the visitors.

The challenge worked. The ball ricocheted to Ferland Mendy, whose bouncing cross was excellently turned in by Benzema.

“We know if we give the ball away in dangerous areas, they’re going to punish us,” Foden said post-match after noting Real Madrid’s unrivaled Champions League pedigree.

The seasoned winners in this competition will prey on the smallest errors. Fernandinho – an ersatz right-back after replacing another unnatural player in that position, John Stones, during the first half – promptly followed his sumptuous assist for Foden with an ill-advised attempt to halt Vinicius on the halfway line. The winger duped his compatriot and coolly finished after an explosive, though largely unchallenged, sprint down the left flank.

And though Aymeric Laporte’s concession of a penalty was slightly unfortunate – the ball hit his head before it glanced off his outstretched arm – Benzema leaned on every bit of his experience to net his penalty for Real Madrid’s third goal. Benzema peeked at Ederson as he trotted up to the spot and saw that the goalkeeper was coiled and prepared to spring in either direction, so he serenely looped a Panenka into the middle of the net.

City hadn’t conceded a goal in the knockout rounds. They hadn’t surrendered a Champions League goal at home since November. Yet Real Madrid, who City outplayed for long periods, relied on their know-how to breach the reigning English champions three times. City should’ve won the match by two or more goals.

“We’re not going to decide the tie tomorrow,” Carlo Ancelotti said before the doubleheader began. “It will be decided at the Bernabeu.”

Real Madrid have players remaining from their hoarding of four Champions League crowns over the past eight years. That much was clear in a classic display of opportunism, fighting to win individual battles, and reveling in the pressure. They suffered and came out with a 4-3 defeat, which was much more than they deserved.

City, without a single Champions League winner in their squad, must learn from the best – and do it fast – if they’re going to collect Europe’s top prize at the end of May and in years to come.

And then there were four. The Champions League semifinals begin this week with a pair of intriguing matchups on deck. Here’s a breakdown of each contest, along with predicted outcomes.

Manchester City vs. Real Madrid

• First leg: April 26 (Etihad Stadium)
• Second leg: May 4 (Santiago Bernabeu)

The 13-time champions, who boast about the European Cup being part of their DNA, against a club that’s desperate to validate its project on the continental stage by capturing the famous trophy for the first time.

Real Madrid and Manchester City, coming off equally chaotic but very different quarterfinal triumphs, meet in this round’s marquee matchup. It wouldn’t really be accurate to dub this the old guard of European football against the new – Manchester City have been the dominant force in English domestic football for the last decade, after all. But the sport’s changing financial landscape – and thus its power shift toward England – hasn’t yet resulted in City winning their most desired accolade: the Champions League.

“If we had to compete with history, we wouldn’t have a chance,” Pep Guardiola said of the impending clash. “Their history speaks for itself.

“We have to have the desire to compete against them. To play against Real Madrid is an incredible test. We want to try it. We need to suffer, to stick together, when we have the ball, try to attack.”

Joao Cancelo’s absence looms large over the first leg; the Portuguese full-back, a creative fulcrum from his nominally defensive position, is suspended for Tuesday’s affair. There are very few players in the world capable of replicating Cancelo’s attacking impact. With respect to the possible replacements in Guardiola’s squad, none of them play for Manchester City. Injuries to Kyle Walker and John Stones are concerning, too, especially considering that Vinicius Junior isn’t exactly the opponent you want to see when faced with a selection crisis at right-back.

Guardiola, often ridiculed for “overthinking” his lineup and tactical choices in recent Champions League seasons, has no choice but to concoct something unique after admitting that both Walker and Stones are “doubts” for Tuesday.

Absentees aside, Guardiola can – and should – take solace in a simple yet vital fact: Manchester City is the better team. By the Expected Goals (xG) metric, City have both the best attack and defense of the four semifinalists remaining in this year’s competition; their xG difference of 12.6 is vastly superior to Real Madrid’s mark (4.2). Yes, Madrid has faced tougher opposition in the knockout stages, but City navigated a more difficult group.

Real Madrid, as they did in each of the last two rounds, will have to rely on less tangible factors. It’s impossible to measure, but the experience and self-belief that decorated veterans like Karim Benzema, Luka Modric, Casemiro, and Toni Kroos possess means there’s never a sense of panic on the pitch, particularly when the second leg is played at home.

“At the Bernabeu, nothing is ever lost,” Carlo Ancelotti said after the rousing quarterfinal with Chelsea, which the red-hot Benzema decided in extra time. “I can’t explain it, but there is a magic at the Bernabeu that helps you.”

By every quantifiable metric, Guardiola’s team is superior. If that “magic” is real – and, honestly, after seeing Madrid conjure up seemingly impossible Champions League victories out of the ether on countless occasions, it just might be – they’ll need every last drop of it to topple Manchester City.

This time, previous success might not be enough to beget more of it. City, last year’s defeated finalists, are on a mission to write their own chapter of history.

Prediction: Manchester City advance after extra time

Liverpool vs. Villarreal

• First leg: April 27 (Anfield)
• Second leg: May 3 (Estadio de la Ceramica)

Juventus. Bayern Munich. Liverpool?

Villarreal, the modest Spanish club making its first appearance in the Champions League semifinals since 2006, is aiming to pull off yet another upset and extend a remarkable European run that’s being savored in an era otherwise dominated by uber-rich “super” clubs with unlimited resources.

This would be their biggest surprise yet, though, and by some margin.

Unai Emery’s unflappable unit will have to overcome a Liverpool team that has just one loss in all competitions since Dec. 28. Looking to reach a third Champions League final in five seasons, this is arguably the best squad Jurgen Klopp and the Reds have put forth in that stretch.

“They have probably the most successful cup competition manager in world football, so he knows what he is doing,” Klopp said of his opposite number. “Unai Emery is the king of the cups. It is unbelievable what he is doing.”

How Emery compensates for the expected absence of injured striker Gerard Moreno will be the most intriguing tactical wrinkle of the first leg, and perhaps the most decisive of the entire tie. Giovani Lo Celso, as he’s done on occasion, could play a more advanced position behind Arnaut Danjuma. Having the Argentine in a faux No. 10 role would then allow Emery to pack the center of the pitch by introducing another midfielder, possibly Manu Trigueros or Francis Coquelin, into the lineup in an effort to wrest control. At the very least, it’d offer some resistance against Thiago, who’s again at his metronomic best at the heart of Liverpool’s midfield.

That conservative option seems most likely, based on Emery’s track record in the competition this season. This is a team, remember, that knocked out Bayern Munich despite ceding possession almost entirely and having just two shots on target over the 180 minutes.

Can such a guarded approach work again?

Though unlikely, if Emery wants to be more aggressive, quarterfinal hero Samuel Chukwueze could be inserted into the starting XI, which would potentially help to keep Andrew Robertson more honest down the flank.

But even if the Basque strategist solves that conundrum, he still needs an answer for the other side of the pitch, where Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mohamed Salah will try to overwhelm the sometimes overzealous Pervis Estupinan. Trying to shut down Liverpool is like playing whack-a-mole – if you put out one fire, another immediately springs up.

We’ve been burned before siding against Emery, but beating this Liverpool team is a different proposition to anything the Yellow Submarine have faced thus far. Villarreal will make it tight, of course, but Klopp’s rampant side is simply on another level that only Manchester City can match this season.

Get ready for an all-English Champions League final. Again.

Prediction: Liverpool advance 3-2 on aggregate

Manchester United will hand the reins over to Erik ten Hag, announcing Thursday that the 52-year-old will become the club’s new permanent manager this summer.

The Ajax boss, who will continue his duties at the Dutch club until the Eredivisie season concludes, has agreed to a three-year contract that will keep him at Old Trafford until June 2025. The deal includes an option to extend his stay a further year.

“It is a great honor to be appointed manager of Manchester United and I am hugely excited by the challenge ahead,” Ten Hag said.

“I know the history of this great club and the passion of the fans, and I am absolutely determined to develop a team capable of delivering the success they deserve.”

“It will be difficult to leave Ajax after these incredible years, and I can assure our fans of my complete commitment and focus on bringing this season to a successful conclusion before I move to Manchester United.”

Ten Hag will replace interim manager Ralf Rangnick, who has struggled to turn United’s season around since taking over for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in November.

The announcement came after Ajax finalized the terms of his reported €2-million release clause, according to The Guardian’s Fabrizio Romano and Jamie Jackson.

With Ten Hag at the helm, United hope for similar success that followed his appointment at Ajax in 2017. Ten Hag played a significant role in reshaping the club, helping to end its four-year Eredivisie drought with league titles in 2019 and 2021 (Ajax were top of the league in 2020 before the season was abandoned due to COVID-19).

Ajax currently have a four-point lead atop the Eredivisie table with five games remaining.

The challenge at United, however, is undoubtedly greater. The Dutch coach will have the task of resolving the countless issues plaguing the club for almost a decade since its last Premier League triumph in 2013.

Player recruitment is understood to be one of his main responsibilities, with The Guardian reporting that the team expects to give Ten Hag the final say on transfers moving forward.

Ten Hag is Manchester United’s fifth permanent manager since Sir Alex Ferguson retired nine years ago.

United are currently in danger of missing out on qualifying for next season’s Champions League. The Red Devils are four points back of fourth place with five matches left and trail a Tottenham Hotspur side that has a game in hand.