City get spectacular comeback win in Madrid
Manchester City finally produced a Champions League performance worth their status as one of European football's elite clubs by beating Real Madrid 2-1 away in Wednesday's last-16 first leg after pulling off a stunning late fightback.
Kevin De Bruyne kept his cool to beat Belgium team mate Thibaut Courtois from the penalty spot in the 82nd minute to provide City the lead after Gabriel Jesus had headed home a cross from De Bruyne to pull the visitors level in the 78th minute.
Isco had given Real the lead on the hour mark carrying out a sweeping counterattack but the 13-times European champions' night soon unravelled, culminating in captain Sergio Ramos being sent off for hauling down Jesus in a bid to prevent a third City goal.
City coach Pep Guardiola, who hasn't gone past the quarter-final in his three previous seasons with the club, was delighted with how his side turned the match around but also said the tie was still wide open.
"Winning in the Bernabeu gives us great satisfaction, it's incredible for us rather than something this club is utilized to. I'm very pleased with the effect and the performance, we showed great personality," he said before sounding an email of caution.
"When there is one club who was simply with the capacity of turning a tie around it is Real Madrid, they have the annals and experience in this competition to accomplish it."
Ramos will be suspended for the second leg at the Etihad Stadium on March 17 while City's influential defender Aymeric Laporte was forced off injured in the first half, another setback in a season marked by fitness troubles.
City went in to the match with a two-year ban from European competition hanging out their necks for defying UEFA's rules on financial fair play although the club submitted an appeal against the sanction earlier this week.
The visiting supporters chanted against Europe's organising body through the entire game and after they had completed their comeback the sanction had turn into a badge of pride for the gleeful fans.
Guardiola opted to leave his top scorers Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero out of your starting lineup despite them getting a combined 40 goals in every competitions this season.
Yet he considered Sterling in the next half and the England forward earned the penalty that De Bruyne snatched the winner, drawing a foul from Real's Dani Carvajal.
Brazil striker Jesus led City's line from the start and had their two best chances in the first half, first drawing a save from Madrid keeper Courtois then seeing a go hurriedly scuffed off the line by three Real players before halftime.
Real's best chance of the first half came when Karim Benzema had a header saved by Ederson and the ball fell to Vinicius Jr. however the teenager fell over just as he was shaping to shoot in to the unguarded net.
The Brazilian had not been fazed by the miss, though, and played a crucial part in breaking the deadlock by chasing down Fernandinho and laying on the pass for Isco to score.
Real's fans felt these were on the familiar way to victory within their favourite competition and began to sing 'We will be the Kings of Europe', but it was City, whose only European trophy came in the 1970 Cup Winners' Cup, who had the last laugh.
"There is no explanation for what happened, we'd 75 spectacular minutes and within the last a quarter-hour we didn't do what we had a need to do, we lacked intensity and control plus they had two attacks and scored twice," said Real's Casemiro.
"But the tie is not over, when there is a team that's capable of a comeback it really is Real Madrid."
