Manchester City 2-3 Real Madrid Player Ratings: Los Blancos snatch a late victory over the Cityzens away from home

Real Madrid completed a majestic turnaround and won 3-2, thanks to goals from Kylian Mbappe, Brahim Diaz and Jude Bellingham. The brace from Erling Haaland was not enough for the Cityzens to get a positive result, who now need to outscore Real Madrid away from home by two goals to go through into the Round of 16.

Pep Guardiola put John Stones in midfield while Madrid’s defensive injury crisis has led to Carlo Ancelotti selecting Aurelien Tchoameni at centre-back and Fede Valverde at right-back. The game was off to an exciting start just like everyone predicted. Real Madrid almost got a penalty shout when Valverde played Vinicius through on goal with a fantastic pass, but it was ruled out for offside.

Another golden chance went down the drain when Rodrygo found Mendy and he quickly played a one-two with Vinicius to get in behind Ederson, but fluffed it with a bad shot. Manchester City who were struggling defensively, drew first blood after a long VAR check, when Haaland volleyed the ball into the net after Gvardiol, who started the counter-attack, chested the ball in the box. The hosts established dominance after that goal, consistently troubling the make-shift defence of Real Madrid.

City started off strong in the second half too, with Haaland hitting the crossbar, thanks to a deflection off Camavinga. The visitors pulled one back though, when Ceballos received the ball after a free-kick attempt from Valverde and he played an excellent floated pass over the top of the City defence to Mbappe, who striked it on the volley which awkwardly got lobbed over Ederson.

The hosts lost the dominance, but when Ceballos made a bad tackle on Foden in the box, the hosts were given a golden chance to get the lead back as the referee gave a penalty for Manchester City. Erling Haaland made no mistake in converting it and the lead was restored.

But a mistake from Ederson costed City after he fumbles a pass which ends up in a counter attack finished off by ex Manchester City player Brahim Diaz. Ancelloti’s side snatched the win out of no where thanks to Jude Bellingham who tapped the ball into the empty net.

Here are the Manchester City vs Real Madrid player ratings.

Manchester City Player Ratings vs Real Madrid

Goalkeeper

Ederson: 5/10 – He made some crucial saves but some errors late in the game costed his side.

Defenders

Akanji: 7/10 – He dealed with Vinicius Jr really well and locked down the right flank but unfortunately had to leave the pitch because of an injury.

Dias: 6.5/10 – He showed leadership tonight, organising the backline. He also dealt with Mbappe fairly well.

Ake: 6.5/10 – His timing and clearances were crucial for the City’s backline tonight.

Gvardiol: 7/10 – Outside of his fantastic defensive prowess, his involvement in the opening goal of the match was fantastic, linking up excellently with Haaland.

Midfielders

Stones: 6.5/10 – He seamlessly slipped into defensive midfield and look as comfortable as he does when he plays as a centreback.

De Bruyne: 4.5/10 – A surprisingly quiet game for a player of his standards, as he did not look at his best at all.

B. Silva: 5.5/10 – He conceded a silly foul in the dangerous area and got punished for it with an equaliser.

Forwards

Savinho: 6.5/10 – While he is known for his flair on the attacking side, his defensive contirbutions tonight were immense.

Grealish: 7/10 – The wide attacker played a big role in the flighted pass to Gvardiol for the opening goal but was unlucky to get subbed off because of an injury.

Haaland: 8.5/10 – A brace against a side where he failed to score in his career, thanks to good link-up play with Gvardiol and clever finishing and a calm penalty to double his tally.

Substitutes

Foden: 7/10

R. Lewis: 6/10

M. Kovacic: 6/10

Gundogan: NA

Marmoush: NA

Manager

Pep Guardiola: 6.5/10 – While his tactical tweaks helped the side to constantly be in battle, his team exhibited defensive lapses throughout the game and paid dearly for it.

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Real Madrid Player Ratings vs Manchester City

Goalkeeper

Courtois: 6.5/10 – He made some really strong saves against a spirited side at home.

Defenders

Valverde: 7.5/10 – He was strong in defense against Grealish and some of the forward passes he made were outstanding, alongside his ranged attempts in attack.

Asencio: 7.5/10 – The young centreback was ready to deal with Haaland. He showed great awareness to read the game and make interceptions at the right time.

Tchouameni: 6/10 – He provided a sturdy defensive presence with a fantastic work-rate.

F. Mendy: 5/10 – His attacking game was shocking as he failed to link-up properly with Vinicius and he struggled defensively too.

Midfielders

Ceballos: 7/10 – He did well to win a free-kick near the box and also assist Mbappe for the equaliser, but also gave away a penalty too.

Camavinga: 7/10 – He linked the defense to the midfield with his passing and some of his runs off the ball were fantastic too.

Bellingham: 8.5/10 – He was a workhorse in midfield, stopping counter attacks and ended up scoring the winner of the match like he usually does.

Forwards

Vinicius Jr: 7/10 – Despite having no standout moment, he was the brightest spark of the attack as he linked up with others well, created quality chances and even hit the bar once.

Mbappe: 7.5/10 – While an acrobatic attempt to pull his team back was praise-worthy, his shooting was surprisingly off tonight.

Rodrygo: 5.5/10 – He looked threatening at occasions but his overall impact was limited.

Substitutes

B. Diaz: 7.5/10

L. Modric: NA

F. Garcia: NA

Manager

Carlo Ancelotti: 7/10 – His team did well to snatch a win away from home and will be confident to protect the lead at the Bernabeu.

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