The defending champions, Manchester City, were able to achieve a temporary victory over Real Madrid in the first leg of the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League. The match ended in a 3-3 draw away from home.

Real Madrid and Man City gave the audience an exciting match until the last minute. Photo: Marca

Real Madrid’s field was the setting for an exhilarating beginning for Manchester City, who are the reigning champions. In the second minute of the match, the English team came out on top. After recognising that goalkeeper Lunin was stationed at the opposite end of the goal, Bernardo Silva, who was playing in the middle of the field, took a deft free kick.

In comparison to their victory over Crystal Palace in the Premier League by a score of 4-2; Manchester City was pleased to have midfielder Foden back in action. But Kevin de Bruyne suddenly started experiencing health issues, and as a result, he was placed on reserve. Last year, De Bruyne was the one who scored for Manchester City in their match against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu, which ended in a 1-1 draw.

Real Madrid was able to shift the tide of the game in the first half, which ultimately resulted in Man City losing their advantage very quickly. When Camavinga took a shot from outside the penalty area in the 12th minute, the ball hit the foot of a player for Manchester City and went into the back of the net. Two minutes later, Vinicius made a pass to Rodrygo, who then ran down wide and finished the ball with a deft touch, bringing the score to 2-1 in favor of the home team.

Vinicius and Rodrygo played very well for Real Madrid in the first half against Man City. Photo: Champions League

Like past matches against Real Madrid, Erling Haaland was quite lackluster. He was closely marked by the central defenders Rudiger and Tchouameni. On the opposite field, Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham did not shine as usual, despite having a number of scoring opportunities.

Man City played very persistently despite being behind. Pep Guardiola still did not change personnel after the first half ended. This strategy was successful in the second half. In the 66th minute, Foden fired a dangerous long-range shot from outside the penalty area, helping Man City equalize 2-2.

5 minutes later, defender Josko Gvardiol received the ball from Jack Grealish, before shooting beautifully from long range, increasing the score to 3-2 for Man City. The English team finished very well from the second line, in the context that Real had many gaps in the middle.

Man City proved the status of the defending champion team by playing very well on Real Madrid’s field. Photo: UEFA Champions League

However, Real Madrid did not decline, true to its position as the most successful team in the UEFA Champions League. After Luka Modric entered the field, the home team’s position improved significantly. In the 79th minute, Vinicius crossed the ball for Federico Valverde to volley across the corner, equalizing 3-3 for Real.

This is also the last goal of this match. Real Madrid wanted to score more goals but failed. With a 3-3 draw, Man City temporarily prevailed as the second leg will be played at Etihad’s home stadium.

In the semi-finals of last season’s Champions League, Man City beat Real Madrid 4-0 at their home stadium.