How Manchester City thought 'inside the box' to unsettle Real Madrid

But just beneath the surface, something else was going on: a fascinating midfield evolution that underlines why 2023 might be Man City's year to take home the trophy.

Before a ball was kicked tonight, Man City knew that Real Madrid could dominate them in the middle of the park. Madrid's midfield trio of Valverde, Kroos and Modric can do just about anything, from deep-lying defending to creative ball distribution. They tend to move around the field as needed with two dropping back toward defense and one moving forward to supply attackers as needed. It's a reliable system that opposing teams struggle to break down. Many don't even try—they simply accept that Madrid will keep possession for most of the game and hope to score on a counterattack.

But Man City took a different approach Tuesday. Coach Pep Guardiola decided that he wasn't simply going to break Madrid down: he was going to overrun them.

To make this happen, Guardiola opted for a four-man midfield, giving him one extra body to play with. But he didn't opt for the obvious choice of playing those four in a 'diamond', with one up front, one behind, and two stretched out in the wings. Instead, he tried something new, something we don't see often these days: he played them in a rather odd-looking 'box', with Gundogan and De Bruyne up front and Rodri and Stones behind.

From kickoff Gundogan, De Bruyne, Rodri and Stones held their positions in relation to one another and moved around the field in a unit. This meant that when they pushed forward, all four of them were facing Madrid's lone attacking midfielder, and when they sunk back, all four could soak up any pressure Madrid threw at them. It did leave them slightly vulnerable on the edges of the field, but it hardly mattered; Man City kept the ball so well that Madrid's attacks were few and far between. Their midfield 'box' gave them dozens of passing options every time they needed to move the ball.

With the score level at 1-1 and a return leg coming up next week, this semifinal could still go either way. But Man City will be by far the happier of the two teams after this match. They scored a vital away goal, kept Madrid at bay and proved they could rain on their midfield parade. It was a spectacular showing from Man City and one that will fill them with confidence.

So much for the old adage of thinking outside the 'box': for Guardiola and Man City, the key to midfield success seems to be thinking squarely within it.