Soccer
Real Madrid takes down Man City and Vinicius silences the Etihad
The reigning Champions League winners outplayed their opponents and head into the second leg with an advantage. Vinicius was the standout player.
Real Madrid celebrates victory over Man City
It happened in the 2021/2022 season, and again last year. Once more, Pep Guardiola suffered. After trailing on the scoreboard until just seven minutes before the final whistle, Real Madrid, true to their reputation for comebacks, stunned Manchester City with a 3-2 victory in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16, played on English soil.
For most of the 90 minutes, Carlo Ancelotti's team looked far superior to the English side, who only showed a moment of clarity in the middle of the first half. Despite the victory, the Italian manager remained cautious.
"We have to play another game, we have taken a small advantage, it was a very good game. We must be happy," Ancelotti said after the match.
Guardiola was self-critical when commenting on what happened: "I said it several months ago, I'm not good enough. The truth is that we are not stable enough. It has happened many times this has happened."
Goals from Kylian Mbappé, Brahim Diaz—a former Manchester City player—and Jude Bellingham canceled out the two English goals, both scored by Erling Haaland.
But it was Vinícius Junior who truly stole the spotlight. The Brazilian, who was named the match's Most Valuable Player (MVP), received a hostile reception from the English fans. They greeted him with a banner featuring Manchester City player Rodri Hernández with the Ballon d'Or, alongside the slogan "stop crying," which was directly aimed at Vinícius.
The Real Madrid star responded in the best way possible, dominating the field and silencing the Etihad Stadium. He provided the assist to Bellingham, sealing the victory for the reigning Champions League champions.
The second leg will be played at the Santiago Bernabeu on February 19.
Elsewhere, Paris Saint-Germain dominated Brest away (0-3), with a stellar Ousmane Dembélé scoring two of the goals. Borussia Dortmund also secured a 0-3 victory at home against Sporting Lisbon, while Juventus triumphed over PSV by the narrowest of margins (2-1).
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