Despite falling behind twice, Real Madrid emerged victorious against Manchester City with a score of 3-2 in the first leg of the Champions League play-off, securing a chance to advance to the Round of 16.
Forward Erling Haaland scored twice, boosting his Champions League tally to 49 goals in 48 matches; however, Manchester City couldn’t maintain their lead ahead of the return leg at the Bernabeu. Kylian Mbappe netted a peculiar goal, followed by Brahim Diaz equalizing to make it 2-2 against his former club. In the second minute of stoppage time, Jude Bellingham sealed the win for Real Madrid at 3-2.
Jude Bellingham scores the decisive goal for Real Madrid against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium, Manchester, England, on February 11, 2025. Photo: Guardian
The visitors even appeared content with a draw, substituting Mbappe in the 90th minute for defender Fran Garcia to bolster their defense and waste time. Yet somehow, Manchester City shot themselves in the foot and collapsed once again, as they have frequently this season.
In a seemingly harmless situation in the midfield, midfielder Mateo Kovacic made a weak backward pass, and Rico Lewis hesitated to clear the ball, allowing Vinicius Junior to steal it and advance. Goalkeeper Ederson rushed out unnecessarily, enabling the Brazilian striker to chip the ball over him, allowing Bellingham to easily tap it into an open net, giving Real Madrid the lead just eight days before the return match in Madrid.
Bellingham (right) celebrates his goal in front of the Etihad crowd. Photo: Reuters
Ederson performed well for the first 80 minutes, making two crucial saves in the 62nd and 66th minutes. However, the 31-year-old goalkeeper could have done better on the last two goals. In the 86th minute, he failed to secure a tight-angle shot from Vinicius, allowing the ball to fall right to Diaz, who slotted it home into the far corner.
Despite playing only 15 matches over three seasons with Manchester City, Diaz chose not to celebrate his goal. However, he did join in the celebration with his teammates when Bellingham scored the final goal, prompting boos and whistles from the Etihad crowd directed at the former City midfielder.
Vinicius played a significant role in both of Real’s last two goals, earning him the UEFA Man of the Match award. The 2024 FIFA Best Player has either scored or assisted in 15 of his last 17 matches in the Champions League knockout stage.
Before the match, the Etihad fans displayed a large banner of Rodri holding the 2024 Ballon d’Or, as Vinicius was expected to win it. The banner read, “Stop crying.” During the match, City fans taunted Vinicius with chants about the Ballon d’Or, but he remained silent, simply pointing to the 15 Champions League trophies emblazoned on Real’s jersey.
Haaland (left) celebrates the opening goal with Josko Gvardiol. Photo: AP
Vinicius could have easily been awarded Man of the Match himself if Manchester City had not faltered in the dying minutes. Norwegian striker Haaland opened the scoring in the 19th minute following a beautiful team move. Midfielder Jack Grealish received the ball on the left wing and lofted it into the box, perfectly setting up defender Josko Gvardiol, who controlled it with his chest. Haaland, positioned nearby, quickly finished it into the far corner.
Haaland completed his brace in the 80th minute with a penalty. Midfielder Dani Ceballos committed an unnecessary foul on Phil Foden inside the box, prompting referee Clement Turpin to award a penalty for the home side. The 24-year-old striker did not waste the opportunity, slotting the penalty into the low left corner to put Manchester City ahead 2-1. He lamented missing a long-range shot that hit the crossbar, preventing him from achieving a hat-trick.
With his two goals, Haaland surpassed Sergio Aguero’s record of 47 Champions League goals. Aguero had drawn attention before the match by claiming that Manchester City would defeat Real Madrid, threatening to “cut off his testicles” if they didn’t. However, Pep Guardiola’s squad failed to deliver on the Argentine striker’s confidence.
Manchester City allowed Real Madrid to take 20 shots during the match, the highest number allowed to a visiting team at the Etihad under Guardiola. One of those shots was Mbappe’s equalizer in the 60th minute, which came from a lobbed pass by Ceballos. The French striker raced into the box and executed a bicycle kick that didn’t strike the ball cleanly but created an awkward trajectory into the far corner, causing Ederson to misstep.
In contrast, Manchester City only managed 11 shots and failed to create any significant chances aside