The Etihad Stadium was roaring with noise as Man City's fans shouted themselves hoarse.
The score was still 2–0, with the home team listed first and the away team second.
After the teams switched ends for the second half, the flow of the match remained largely unchanged. Man City continued to firmly control possession and the tempo, while AC Milan could only defend passively and endure the pressure. Even when they occasionally seized a chance to launch a sporadic counterattack, they still struggled to create any threat up front.
Ibrahimovic, Shaarawy, and Robinho could only vent their fury through long-range shots.
Anyone could see that the two teams' overall strength was simply on different levels.
Not long after the second half began, Man City started attacking aggressively down both wings and won a series of corner kicks.
It was the fifty-first minute. Sánchez forced his way through on the right and created a corner-kick opportunity.
David Silva stood in the corner area and slowly raised his left hand.
There were players everywhere inside AC Milan's penalty area, each marking an opponent.
Man City had deployed three center-backs that night: Pepe, David Luiz, and Javi Martinez. All three were tall, powerful players with excellent heading ability. Add the towering striker Su Dong, and AC Milan's defenders felt the pressure.
They had created corner after corner without ever posing a real threat. This time, Su Dong decided to use a different corner routine.
The players had gathered together moments earlier to discuss it, and everyone followed Su Dong's instructions.
Pepe and David Luiz were now lurking at the near post, Javi Martinez stood in the middle, while Su Dong hid at the far post. AC Milan treated the situation like a major crisis, assigning Nesta to mark Su Dong and Tiago Silva