By Yomi Adeboye
Manchester City’s hope of booking a place in the last 16 of the Champions League was dented on Tuesday as the reigning champions of the English Premier League were handed a 3 – 2 defeat by relentless Spanish giants, Real Madrid at the Etihad Stadium.
The defeat leaves Pep Guardiola’s Man City with a massive mountain to climb during next week’s second leg away to Real at their reputed fortress, The Bernabeu.
Although City had started the match on a promising note with a dominant display that resulted in a 19th minute goal scored by Erling Haaland with Josko Gvardiol as provider, they failed to sustain the form and tempo even as Real’s defenders were not at their best for most parts of the match.
After Real’s players had missed several scoring chances, their French Superstar Kylian Mbappe got an equaliser with a close–range finish that ignited their zeal but Erling Haaland came to City’s rescue once again as he netted a penalty kick to take the lead.
With about four minutes left, City’s former player, Brahim Diaz lifted his team’s morale by making it 2 – 2 while Jude Bellingham scored an injury– time winner some seconds before the end of the match.
Ahead of a difficult second leg coming up next week in Spain, Guardiola will also have to worry about the fate of Jack Grealish who was taken off as a result of injury after a brilliant performance in the early part of the match.
Considering Man City’s recent decline in form, next week’s visit to The Bernabeu, home of the club reputed as the most experienced in the competition’s history, promises to be an interesting but certainly very tough task for Guardiola and his ageing team.
