Real Madrid and Manchester City put on an enthralling display last night on their way to playing out a 3-3 draw in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League quarterfinals.
It only took two minutes for Man City to take the lead through a clever free-kick from Bernardo Silva. But, Real Madrid struck back ten minutes later through a Ruben Dias own-goal before Rodrygo put the hosts ahead moments later.
Manchester City went on to reclaim the lead with two second-half golazos from Phil Foden and Josko Gvardiol, only for Federico Valverde to score a stunning volley and level things up for Real Madrid.
It was an entertaining affair at the Santiago Bernabeu and went on to make history as it became only the second-ever knockout stage match in the Champions League to see three goals scored in the opening 14 minutes, after Man City v Tottenham in April 2019 (2-2 in 11 mins).
All of Manchester City’s goals last night came from outside the penalty box which meant that they became the first team to score three goals from outside the box in a Champions League away game against Real Madrid since at least 2003/04.
Antonio Rudiger kept Erling Haaland quiet. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)
What it also meant was Real Madrid managed to lock down the threat of Erling Haaland on one more occasion, with Antonio Rudiger bossing the battle between the pair.
Haaland has now played more games (3) without scoring against Real Madrid than any other opponent in his Champions League career (8 shots, 6 on target in 269 minutes).
While Jude Bellingham did not have the best of the nights, Vinicius Jr. stood out for Real Madrid in attack, registering two assists for Rodrygo and Valverde’s goals.
The 23-year-old now has the second-highest number of assists in the Champions League since the start of the 2018/19 season (19), only behind Kylian Mbappe and Kevin De Bruyne (both 20).
The 3-3 result also meant that Real Madrid have not lost any of their last 27 home games in all competitions (W21 D6), their best unbeaten run at home since September 2013 (G47 W40 D7).