RB Leipzig central defender Josko Gvardiol, scored a header in the second half to cancel off Riyad Mahrez’s goal during their Champions League round of 16 match on Wednesday against Manchester City.
As the lynchpin of Croatia’s frugal defence and one of the World Cup’s breakout stars, Gvardiol showcased off his offensive flair by rising above the City defence to head in the equaliser in the 70th minute.
Mahrez gave City the lead after 27 minutes, giving them the idea that they would easily win away from home. But, after the half in the first champions league match, City’s composure faded. Manchester City’s Round of 16 match against RB Leipzig was played in the Red Bull Arena, and fans were displeased with the team’s performance. Bernardo Silva, though, was the one Manchester City player who stood out for his terrible performance, prompting fans to voice their disgust on Twitter.
Match Report :
RB Leipzig and Manchester City drew 1-1 in the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 match. By the half-hour mark, Riyad Mahrez gave City the lead, capping up the Premier League champions’ overpowering start. Later, Josko Gvardiol scored the equaliser for Leipzig.
Leipzig, though, came out fire after the break, with halftime substitute Benjamin Henrichs coming close twice before Croatian defender Gvardiol converted Marcel Halstenberg’s cross as City were caught off guard from a short corner.
Manchester City seemed to be on track to end their losing skid after dominating the first half. Guardiola used a more traditional back four than in recent weeks, but in real play, Kyle Walker practically functioned as a right winger while in possession, posing an unexpected threat that Leipzig were unable to counter.
As a result of Walker’s deployment, Mahrez was allowed to operate in-field, much closer to center-forward Erling Haaland, and the goal was his reward for occupying these positions. Xaver Schlager’s erroneous pass to Ilkay Gundogan was intercepted by Jack Grealish. Gvardiol was pushed out of the game by Gundogan’s stunning backheel, allowing Mahrez to score his 12th goal of the season.
During halftime, Leipzig switched out wing backs Lukas Klostermann and Benjamin Henrichs in search of more penetration. The newcomer came close to equalising twice in the first two minutes of the second half. Man City hung on as Leipzig looked for a winner, and fans are looking forward to the next leg in March 14.
Tottenham and Chelsea both suffered 1-0 away losses to AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund in the first round of the Champions League, while Real Madrid crushed Liverpool 5-2 at Anfield so, till now Champions League has not been so kind to the Premier league teams.
What did Man City leader say at the post-match conference?
Pep Guardiola at the post-match conference with BT sport said, “Maybe in the second leg I will be crazy and play with nine strikers,”
“You expect us to come here and win 0-5? That is not a reality,” Guardiola told BT Sport after the game.
“This is a competition that in the group stage many important teams are out. It is difficult. We are a good team and we do many, many good things. We continued to do this. “People expect us to come here and win 4-0, I am sorry we are not able to do this.”
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