Real Madrid Beats Man City 3-2 Away In UCL: Real Madrid, the defending UEFA Champions League champions, defeated Manchester City 3-2 in the first leg of the competition’s first knockout round, which was an away game for the winners.
The first knockout round for the UCL 2024-25 is now underway. Unlike the seasons before, this season’s competition saw all 36 teams in the competition play eight games each and be in a single league table. The top eight teams qualified for the Round of 16, while the teams placed 9 to 24 made it to the first knockout round, the winner of which would make it to the Round of 16.
Real Madrid Beats Man City 3-2 Away In UCL
Surprisingly, the defending champions did not finish in the top eight, instead finishing 11th with five wins and three losses in eight games. But something that was even more surprising was Manchester City’s placement. Before the final league game, they were out of the top 24, but a win over Club Brugge in the final game meant they finished 22nd and made it to the next round.
In what is the biggest heavyweight knockout game in the Champions League this season so far, Man City took on Los Blancos. In the first leg of this match-up at the Etihad Stadium, star striker Erling Haaland opened the scoring in the 19th minute with a clinical strike.
It was not until the 60th minute that Madrid tied the game up 1-1. Another interesting point in this match was that Kylian Mbappe scored this goal, thus stoking the rivalry between two of the best footballers in the world.
In the 78th minute, Real’s Dani Caballos brought Phil Foden down in the box and conceded a penalty, which was scored by Haaland in the 80th minute.
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While it did feel like the Cityzens were cruising to a home-leg victory, Don Carlo’s men had not given up, and in the 86th minute, the match was tied up once again. A couple of minutes after being brought in, Brahim Diaz took advantage of a critical error by City keeper Ederson and scored his team’s second goal, 2-2.
But the drama of this high-octane match was not over, as in the second minute of injury time, Vinicius Jr. dribbled past the City back line, and as Ederson charged him, the Brazilian chipped the ball over him. But as the ball was going wide, Jude Bellingham was there to tuck it into the goal and steal a famous victory in Manchester.
This loss for Pep Guardiola’s side only compounded the poor season they are having by their own lofty standards. In the UEFA Champions League, this side finished 22nd in the league phase. They are also fifth in the Premier League after 24 matches.
As for Real Madrid, while it was not ideal to finish outside of the top eight in the UCL and face Manchester City in the first knockout round, a win in the away leg will do wonders for not only their immediate future but also for this side’s confidence for the remainder of the season.
Check Out: Real Madrid Beats Man City 3-2 Away In UCL
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