Real Madrid scored twice in the final five minutes to secure a 3-2 win at Manchester City in the first leg of their Champions League play-off tie.
There was little doubt as to whether this contest would deliver, it always does, and the tone was set from the off with a fervent Etihad greeting the players. However, the City support would’ve been concerned with what they saw early on as Madrid spurned a couple of good opportunities to take the lead.
After Vinicius Junior had a penalty ruled out for offside, Kylian Mbappe tested Ederson with a fierce drive, and Nathan Ake blocked a goalbound effort from Ferland Mendy.
The Cityzens thus struck the opener against the run of play, but Erling Haaland‘s first-ever goal against Madrid was sublime – built from back to front. City then asserted vintage control on the contest, before the visitors ended the first half with a flourish. Mbappe, however, failed to find the target with a couple of efforts.
Los Blancos’ pressure resumed after the restart, and they were level on the hour mark through a sliced Mbappe volley from the second phase of a Madrid set piece. Ederson was on hand to deny Jude Bellingham a swift go-ahead goal before City settled again and Dani Ceballos brought down Phil Foden for a penalty expertly converted by Haaland.
Remarkably, though, Guardiola’s side threw away their advantage in the final five minutes. Substitute Brahim Diaz drew Madrid level with a well-taken rebounded finish before Bellingham poked home the winner after Vinicius broke in behind and lifted a poor effort over the City goalkeeper.
|
Player |
Rating |
|---|---|
|
GK: Ederson |
6.7/10 |
|
RB: Manuel Akanji |
6.9/10 |
|
CB: Ruben Dias |
5.7/10 |
|
CB: Nathan Ake |
6.8/10 |
|
LB: Josko Gvardiol |
7.5/10 |
|
DM: John Stones |
6.5/10 |
|
RM: Savinho |
6.9/10 |
|
CM: Bernardo Silva |
6.2/10 |
|
CM: Kevin De Bruyne |
6.2/10 |
|
LM: Jack Grealish |
6.2/10 |
|
ST: Erling Haaland |
8.6/10 |
|
SUB: Phil Foden (30′ for Grealish) |
7.5/10 |
|
SUB: Rico Lewis (46′ for Akanji) |
5.6/10 |
|
SUB: Mateo Kovacic (61′ for Ake) |
5.1/10 |
|
SUB: Omar Marmoush (84′ for Savinho) |
N/A |
|
SUB: Ilkay Gundogan (84′ for De Bruyne) |
N/A |
Subs not used: Stefan Ortega (GK), James McAtee, Nico O’Reilly, Abdukodir Khusanov, Nico Gonzalez, Jeremy Doku, Matheus Nunes.
|
Player |
Rating |
|---|---|
|
GK: Thibaut Courtois |
6.5/10 |
|
RB: Federico Valverde |
7.2/10 |
|
CB: Aurelien Tchouameni |
7.1/10 |
|
CB: Raul Asencio |
7.5/10 |
|
LB: Ferland Mendy |
6.6/10 |
|
CM: Eduardo Camavinga |
7.1/10 |
|
CM: Dani Ceballos |
7.5/10 |
|
AM: Jude Bellingham |
8.4/10 |
|
RW: Rodrygo |
7.3/10 |
|
ST: Kylian Mbappe |
8.1/10 |
|
LW: Vinicius Junior |
8.2/10 |
|
SUB: Luka Modric (81′ for Ceballos) |
N/A |
|
SUB: Brahim Diaz (85′ for Rodrygo) |
N/A |
|
SUB: Francisco Garcia (90′ for Mbappe) |
N/A |
Subs not used: Andriy Lunin (GK), Sergio Mestre (GK), Jacobo Ramon, Jesus Vallejo, Lorenzo Aguado, Chema Andres, Gonzalo Garcia, Arda Guler, Endrick.
Player of the match – Erling Haaland (Man City)
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