UCL: Man City & Real Secure Vital First-Leg Wins
14 February, 2024
FC Copenhagen 1-3 Manchester City
UEFA Champions League holders Manchester City recorded a 3-1 victory over FC Copenhagen in the first leg of their Last 16 tie.
Kevin de Bruyne and Jack Grealish were recalled to the City line-up, as Jeremy Doku and Matheus Nunes dropped to the bench after the win over Everton this past weekend.
The Citizens got off to the perfect start when Phil Foden played a reverse pass into de Bruyne, who took one touch before slotting into the far corner.
Copenhagen, meanwhile, were gifted the equaliser as Magnus Mattsson found the back of the net with a lovely first time finish, after Ederson's poor kick out from the back found an opponent rather than Nathan Ake. The home side's joy was short-lived as Pep Guardiola's charges pulled ahead on the stroke of halftime when Bernardo Silva expertly finished off a pass from De Bruyne.
The defending champions continued to dominate in the second half but were getting frustrated as they struggled to get a third goal, with Erling Haaland going closest with a header after 76 minutes.
City did get their reward in second-half stoppage time when Phil Foden played a give-and-go with De Bruyne before rifling home from close range to seal a vital first-leg win.
RB Leipzig 0-1 Real Madrid
Real Madrid took a slight advantage in their Round of 16 match-up after defeating RB Leipzig 1-0 at the Leipzig Arena.
Los Blancos were without the services of top scorer Jude Bellingham through injury, with Carlo Ancelotti giving a start to Brahim Diaz while Nacho replaced Lucas Vazquez in defence.
These two sides are meeting for the first time since the 2022/23 season in the group stages, where Leipzig claimed a 3-2 win in Germany although Los Blancos won the reverse clash 2-0.
After a scoreless first half, Los Blancos broke the deadlock three minutes after the break as Diaz skipped past a few challenges before sending a wonderful strike into the top corner.
Vinicius Junior went close to doubling the lead in the 72nd minute after combining with Diaz but the Brazilian's strike crashed against the upright while the latter failed to finish off the rebound.
Source: www.snl24.com
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