Man City 2-3 Real Madrid: Player ratings as Bellingham steals first leg victory at the Etihad | OneFootball

Man City 2-3 Real Madrid: Player ratings as Bellingham steals first leg victory at the Etihad | OneFootball

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90min

·11 February 2025

Man City 2-3 Real Madrid: Player ratings as Bellingham steals first leg victory at the Etihad

Article image:Man City 2-3 Real Madrid: Player ratings as Bellingham steals first leg victory at the Etihad

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.


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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.

Man City player ratings (4-1-4-1)

Article image:Man City 2-3 Real Madrid: Player ratings as Bellingham steals first leg victory at the Etihad

Erling Haaland scored his first goals against Real Madrid / Alex Livesey - Danehouse/GettyImages

Subs not used: Stefan Ortega (GK), James McAtee, Nico O'Reilly, Abdukodir Khusanov, Nico Gonzalez, Jeremy Doku, Matheus Nunes.

Real Madrid player ratings (4-2-3-1)

Article image:Man City 2-3 Real Madrid: Player ratings as Bellingham steals first leg victory at the Etihad

He got there in the end / Michael Regan/GettyImages

Subs not used: Andriy Lunin (GK), Sergio Mestre (GK), Jacobo Ramon, Jesus Vallejo, Lorenzo Aguado, Chema Andres, Gonzalo Garcia, Arda Guler, Endrick.

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