Manchester City Headed to 2018 Carabao Cup Final After 3-2 Win vs. Bristol City

Manchester City booked their spot in the final of the Carabao Cup with a 3-2 win over Bristol City at Ashton Gate that secured a 5-3 aggregate victory.

Goals from Leroy Sane and Sergio Aguero put the visitors in control, but Marlon Pack pulled one back before Aden Flint levelled the match in stoppage time. Kevin De Bruyne then hit back straight away to secure the win and a place at Wembley Stadium for Pep Guardiola's side.

Despite having a 2-1 lead in the tie, Pep Guardiola showed plenty of respect to his opponents by naming a very strong team for the second leg. Henry Winter at The Times shared the two teams:

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Premier League leaders started the game strongly and went on to dominate the first half. Aguero saw a ball into the box hit the crossbar before John Stones glanced a header wide from a David Silva free-kick.

In contrast, the hosts were struggling to create many problems, although Manchester City goalkeeper Claudio Bravo was not looking impressive, according to The Independent's Jack Pitt-Brooke:

With half-time approaching, City ramped up the pressure, and it paid off as they took the lead with just two minutes of the half remaining. Defender Hordur Magnusson tried to usher the ball out of play, which allowed Bernardo Silva to find Sane. He fired across goal and his shot was helped over the line by a sliding Flint as he tried to clear the ball.

Football reporter Michelle Owen said it was a familiar mistake by Magnusson:

Match of the Day pointed out how effective Sane is for Manchester City:

The goal left Bristol City 3-1 down on aggregate and needing two goals just to take the tie to extra-time. Manager Lee Johnson opted to make two changes at the break hauling off the unfortunate Magnusson for Nathan Baker and sending on Famara Diedhiou for Liam Walsh.

However, the visitors made the tie safe within four minutes of the restart. A quick break saw De Bruyne pick out Aguero, and he moved into the box before firing past goalkeeper Luke Steele. The goal belonged to the striker, but De Bruyne also deserved the plaudits, according to former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher:

Bristol City did manage to grab a goal back just after the hour mark when the hosts pounced on a poor clearance from Stones, and Bobby Reid crossed for Pack to head firmly past Bravo.

The game then became rather disjointed but sprang back into life again in stoppage time as Bristol City scored again to level the tie on the night. Josh Brownhill crossed from the left and Reid headed back to Flint to slide home.

However, City hit back straight away as David Silva slipped in Sane who squared for De Bruyne to fire home from close range.

It's a first Manchester City final for Guardiola, although he may be concerned about the amount of goals his side are shipping, per ESPN FC's Jonathan Smith:

Yet City remain the team to beat in England, and their quadruple hopes are very much alive. Bristol City will undoubtedly be disappointed to go out, particularly with Wembley in sight, but it was another superb showing from the Robins who can take great heart from their impressive cup run.