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The peak that Pep Guardiola has been building this club towards, and a point that European football has long been leading towards. Manchester City have not yet won the Champions League or the treble, but they passed the most difficult challenge in eliminating the defending champions, and did so with a 4-0 victory that went beyond easy. The first half-hour was perhaps Guardiola’s finest spell of football in Europe, and maybe the best ever by an English club on this stage. It will surely be seen as the statement performance should City go and finally lift the trophy in Istanbul, as they reach the stage for the second time. Real Madrid, of all clubs, were humiliated. The entire game has been left trailing in City’s wake. Internazionale are going to need something close to a miracle to beat them, such is City’s level. It is why so many referred to this as the real final. City ended up reaching Istanbul without much of a struggle of all. They have only gone behind in games - in any competition - three times in the last four months. This just never looked like being another of those. From the very start of the game, City came out ferociously determined to ensure they couldn’t possibly have a repeat of last season’s elimination. It was a storm. The manner they came at Madrid, and the way that Thibaut Courtois initially performed miracles of his own to stop them, briefly made it seem like it was going to be another one of those nights. City just came with so much force they utterly blew that away. It instead became one of the club’s great nights. It wasn’t all about that force either, irresistible as it was. The game was ultimately cut open, and effectively decided, by the most remarkable finesse from Kevin De Bruyne. After an opening period where City had looked to pummel Madrid with crosses towards Haaland, the Belgian then played the most divine reverse pass to just put Bernardo Silva into space to drive the ball past Courtois. The goalkeeper this time had no chance. It was the least Bernardo deserved for his performances of late, and he soon had more. Madrid again buckled under the pressure. Bernardo headed home. That was it, after just 37 minutes, but it had felt done long before that. A 76th-minute Eder Militao own goal only added insult to punishment for Madrid, as City played around and through them. Julian Alvarez then wrapped it up to turn a comprehensively convincing victory into a humiliation. It was maybe the defeat that had long been coming for Madrid. It was always going to be City that subjected them to it. The fans were joyously doing the “Poznan” as their players just enjoyed possession in that way Guardiola demands, the very dance a reminder of earlier times when the club had started this journey under this project but still weren’t on stages as grand as another Champions League final. It was joyous. That should also provoke more complicated discussions, that very few people really like to have as they are enjoying shows like this. Any discussion of best-ever English performances in Europe really needs to bring in context like the fact this is an Abu Dhabi state project, that has also become the most lavish sporting project ever seen. It is why this incredible level of superiority was as inevitable as that City goal in the early stages. Even the randomness of cup football can’t withstand it indefinitely. Guardiola has been able to reach a point of perfection, from perfect conditions, and an infrastructure almost built to him. This is brilliantly intelligent planning. It is also obvious, and the sort of thing very few other clubs can afford because they just don’t have the backing over that time. That time also explains modern football. The story of the modern game is really that, around 15 years ago, a group of autocratic states motivated by an acutely regional rivalry looked at football and saw it as powerful new area of expansion. This, similarly driven along by the sport’s embrace of western capitalism, has led to the long-term distortion. Is this good for the sport? No one can deny it’s good to watch, although often at a level that goes beyond sport as a competition. This was certainly an illustration of that. It was never a contest. The European champions were humiliated. New European champions are about to be crowned. That’s all part of the show. It’s also part of wider political ambitions, that do bring in questions about sportswashing and human rights records. There's also the context of those charges brought by the Premier League, and how this return to the Champions League final would also have been the club's return to Europe had the Court of Arbitration for Sport not overturned Uefa's punishment in 2020. None of this should be taken as sympathy for Madrid. They have been one of the most responsible factors in the football landscape looking like it does. The game was for so long disproportionately influenced by their demands. The world they created just got out of their control, and they have now been considerably brutalised by it. City’s rise just continues that process, though. For the last 40 years, football has been increasingly financially staggered and stretched, with the top end getting narrower and narrower. Every few years, fewer clubs can win. State ownership has taken that to new extremes. Guardiola has taken this City to extremes. Another treble now awaits, but this is the most triumphant of all. City aren’t there yet. But, like so much else with the game right now, it feels inevitable. Read More Man City’s greatest Champions League night, Real Madrid need Jude Bellingham and five things we learned Man City vs Real Madrid player ratings as Kyle Walker dominates Vinicius Junior Bernardo Silva’s unique talents lead Man City’s evisceration of Real Madrid Five things we learned as Man City thrash Real Madrid to reach Champions League final Man City vs Real Madrid player ratings as Kyle Walker dominates Vinicius Junior

By Dan Whitcomb A man accused of attacking two congressional staff members with a baseball bat this week

Jordan Spieth says he's good to go for the PGA Championship

A few sideways glances by New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge this week have put pitch tipping and sign stealing back in baseball’s spotlight

Bernardo Silva scored twice as Manchester City advanced to the Champions League final with a 4-0 win against Real Madrid

How social media reacted to Manchester City's demolition of Real Madrid to reach the Champions League final.

The Atlantic Coast Conference has wrapped up its spring meetings

Minnesota says it settled its lawsuit against e-cigarette maker Juul Labs and tobacco giant Altria for $60.5 million

Corey Seager is back in the Texas Rangers lineup

Dorthy's ruby red slippers can't just take you home, they can also land you in federal court. That much was made apparent after a federal grand jury indicted Terry Martin, 76, with one count of theft of a major artwork for allegedly stealing one of four remaining pairs of Dorthy's ruby red slippers from The Wizard of Oz. The indictment claims that Mr Martin stole the slippers — worn by Judy Garland in her iconic 1939 role — in 2005 during an after-hours "visit" to the Judy Garland Museum in the actress's hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota. Federal prosecutors alleged on Tuesday that Mr Martin climbed into the museum through a window, broke a display case containing the slippers, and took off with the legendary film artefact, according to ABC News. The museum's alarm had been tripped, but it failed to alert local police, according to a report by The Guardian. “The biggest thing that ever happened to our museum was getting the slippers stolen. We were literally crying,” the museum’s co-founder, Jon Miner, told KQDS just after the robbery. The slippers were on loan to the museum from Hollywood memorabilia collector Michael Shaw when they were stolen. The other three pairs worn in the movie are in the possession of a private collector, the Smithsonian, and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. At the time of their theft, the slippers were insured for $1m but had a market value of approximately $3.5m. After they disappeared, law enforcement, enthusiasts and film history buffs offered up rewards for the slippers' safe return, with one anonymous donor in Arizona offering up to $1m. The museum even hired a private investigator in 2013 to try to track down the slippers, but the investigation never made headway. In 2017, a man came forward and told the company that insured the slippers he could assist in their recovery. That man was later found to have been allegedly attempting to extort the individual who stole the shoes, according to the FBI. The agency launched a nearly year-long investigation, after which they launched a sting operation to recover the slippers. The FBI managed to recover the slippers in Minneapolis during the operation, and later examination by experts confirmed the shoes were authentic. However, no arrests were made following the sting, as the FBI was continuing its investigation into who actually stole the memorabilia. Since the 2018 recovery operation, the agency has been working to rule out suspects. Little is known about Mr Martin beyond his age. The indictment did not include a motive or any details about how investigators determined Mr Martin was behind the alleged theft. No attorney's information is available for Mr Martin. Read More Stolen ruby slippers from Wizard of Oz found by FBI after 13 years $1 million reward offered for the return of Judy Garland's ruby red slippers, a decade after they were stolen from a museum The Wizard of Oz most influential film of all time, study finds

Take Two Interactive Software Inc., known for the Grand Theft Auto video-game franchise, soared in extended trading after

EDITORS/NEWS DIRECTORS: The Associated Press is offering a video of Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear speaking about his campaign and plans for the future. Attorney General Daniel Cameron won the Republican primary for Kentucky governor and will face Beshear in November. Use the video on your websites, broadcasts, social media platforms and elsewhere. ___ GET THE VIDEO Gov. Beshear focuses on Kentucky families in campaign ___ READ AP’S COVERAGE Trump-backed Daniel Cameron to face Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear in November ___ PUBLISH THIS Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear sat down with the Associated Press on Wednesday to discuss his bid for second-term as Kentucky’s governor. He touted economic development, his work at the border and his response to natural disasters throughout the state. “We are at a moment of time and opportunity in Kentucky, the likes of which we’ve never seen. Getting picked for the largest investments of Ford and Amazon. More jobs than ever before. R&D facilities. I got to announce a steel facility in Bell County and a distillery in Fulton County on the same day. More rural jobs than we’ve ever seen. Now, this election for me is about seeing through this work and turning years of great economic development into decades of prosperity,” Beshear said. On Tuesday, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron became the first Black nominee for either party in the state of Kentucky—the republican will be facing off against Beshear in the election. “It’s taken far too long to have a Black nominee of either party for governor. But I think what the attorney general said last night is right, that in this campaign, people are going to judge us by our record and our values. And I know that my campaign will show those values by lifting us up, by moving us forward, by focusing on on better jobs, by living out our collective faith of being there for our neighbor and not stoking division, calling each other names and trying to turn people against each other,” Beshear said. Beshear also defended his decisions while handling the COVID-19 pandemic, something his republican opponents have been keen to use against him. He also defended abortion rights in the state and pushed back on current strict state laws. “In Kentucky, they passed a total ban that leaves victims even of rape and incest without any options. It forces women who are pregnant to carry to term, even when it’s not going to be viable. And they’re going to have to go through the most heart wrenching moments and know they’re going to face that for many, many months. Listen, that’s wrong. And I believe the vast majority of Kentuckians believe that it’s wrong,” Beshear said. Beshear also said he is supporting President Biden for his bid for a second term. ___ Localize It is an occasional feature produced by The Associated Press for its customers’ use. Questions can be directed to Katie Oyan at koyan@ap.org. Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide AP News Digest 3:30 am AP News Digest 3:20 am Kentucky Republicans pick nominee to challenge Democratic Gov. Beshear