Oh, Jack Grealish.
The £100m man could have been the name in lights in Madrid, and all questions over his suitability for Pep Guardiola's side since that switch from Aston Villa could have been washed away.
With a little more luck the England man could have been the player to book the Champions League final date with Liverpool in Paris, but he was denied twice in what we thought were the dying moments. How wrong we were.
First Grealish saw his effort cleared off the line by Ferland Mendy, and then just seconds later he angled a drive agonisingly wide of the post following a deflection. It was painful.
No matter though, we thought. City will see this out. Real Madrid need to score twice.
Well.
You really can't blame Pep Guardiola's side for dropping off and sitting back, as that is what most sides would have done.
Substitute Marco Asensio was so close to getting on the end of a cross as Real searched for a consolation, and then when they recycled the ball Eduardo Camavinga picked out Karim Benzema who had escaped the attentions of Joao Cancelo, with the Portuguese seemingly dropping off as he got used to a new position at right-back.
Benzema's cut back was into a perfect spot, and Rodrygo - the substitute who had been on the pitch for 22 minutes, not that you'd noticed him - nipped in front of Ruben Dias to score. Hello.
The celebrations were exactly those of a side who need another goal, but the Madrid crowd were acting a little differently. To them this was the first goal of a double act, the latest in a series of comebacks which is just what Carlo Ancelotti's side do in this competition this season. Ask PSG. Ask Chelsea.
Six minutes of time were added, but only one was needed.
Eder Militao was making himself a nuisance in the City box, the ball dropped to him and then he moved it back to the veteran Dani Carvajal. In came the cross, it got a nick off Asensio and there, unbelievably, was Rodrygo again.
The Brazilian had taken up a spot almost perfectly in between Dias and Aymeric Laporte, and his header could not have been better placed. Bedlam.
City looked for scapegoats, with Dias turning first to Laporte and then spinning away in disgust, doing his utmost to look at anywhere that didn't include Rodrygo as the goalscorer wheeled away.
On the touchline Marcelo embraced Ancelotti, while Guardiola stewed and stared.
The game had gone to extra-time but in truth it could have ended there.
Dias' clumsy challenge on Benzema in the box came early in the extra period, but it was coming at some point. A dizzied City were now punch drunk, there was no way back.
The remainder of the game passed them by in a sea of fouls, free-kicks and exaggerated falls from the hosts.
Real were seeing this out. City and Guardiola were seeing stars.
