Man City beats Inter Milan, wins treble

Manchester City won the Champions League title for the first time by beating Inter Milan 1-0 in Istanbul's Ataturk Olimpiyat Stadium on Saturday.

Rodri struck in the 68th minute to see the Premier League champions and FA Cup winners complete a treble of trophies this season.

“Today we made history,” City captain Ilkay Gundogan said. “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.”

While it is the first time City has won European soccer's biggest club competition, it is a third Champions League crown for Pep Guardiola as a coach.

He had tears in his eyes as he celebrated on the field with his players after ending his long wait for the title he last won with Barcelona in 2011.

It was his 30th major piece of silverware as a coach and the second time he has won a treble, emulating his feat with Barcelona in 2009. City became just the second English club to complete a sweep of the two biggest domestic trophies and the Champions League, after Manchester United did it in 1999.

City triumphed despite losing inspirational midfielder Kevin De Bruyne to an injury in the first half and star striker Erling Haaland having an unusually quiet evening, finally achieving its ambition of reaching the summit of European soccer — 15 years after Abu Dhabi's ruling family transformed it into one of the richest teams in the world.

Owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan was in attendance to see the crowning moment, watching his team in person for only the second time since buying the club in 2008.

Inter went into the game as the underdog, but pushed City right to the final whistle, with Romelu Lukaku having the chance to score a late equalizer, when heading straight at Ederson from about four meters (yards) out.

City's winner came when Rodri collected Bernardo Silva's cutback and fired through a crowded penalty box.

The relief was unmistakable as he raced towards City's fans and slid on his knees in celebration.

▪ A goal by defender Mary Alica Vignola during first-half stoppage time was not enough for Angel City Football Club as it lost 2-1 to the Washington Spirit in National Women's Soccer League action at Audi Field in Washington D.C.

The Spirit (5-5-1) got first-half goals from Ashley Hatch and Ashley Sanchez.

ACFC (2-3-6) plays again next Saturday when it travels to take on San Diego Wave FC at 1 p.m.