Real Madrid looked all at sea after Kevin De Bruyne and Gabriel Jesus put the hosts 2-0 up inside 11 minutes, and though the ever-reliable Karim Benzema pulled one back before the break, Phil Foden’s header restored City’s two-goal lead. Vinícius Júnior responded quickly, though, and while a fine Bernardo Silva strike made it 4-2 on the night, a Panenka-style Benzema penalty took him to the top of this season’s scorers rankings and left Carlo Ancelotti’s side with just a one-goal deficit to overturn.
Previous meetings
• City were 2-1 winners in both legs against Madrid in the 2019/20 UEFA Champions League round of 16 despite falling behind in the first leg at the Santiago Bernabéu on 26 February when Isco gave the home side a 60th-minute lead. Late goals from Gabriel Jesus (78) and Kevin De Bruyne (83), the latter a penalty after Raheem Sterling had been fouled by Dani Carvajal, turned the game around, Madrid ending with ten men as captain Sergio Ramos was dismissed four minutes from time after fouling Jesus.
• That was City’s first victory against Madrid but they clinched their aggregate win with a second in the delayed second leg in Manchester on 7 August. Although Sterling’s ninth-minute goal was levelled 19 minutes later by Benzema, Jesus secured another 2-1 victory in the 68th minute.
• There was only one goal in the 2015/16 UEFA Champions League semi-final between the clubs. After the first game in Manchester ended scoreless, a 20th-minute own goal from Fernando at the Santiago Bernabéu proved enough to take Zinédine Zidane’s Madrid into the final, where they beat Atlético on penalties, at the expense of Manuel Pellegrini’s City.
• The sides’ only other competitive fixtures came in the 2012/13 group stage, when Madrid twice came from behind to win 3-2 in Spain on Matchday 1. City led twice through Edin Džeko (68) and Aleksandar Kolarov (85) but Madrid responded through Marcelo (76) and Benzema (87) before Cristiano Ronaldo snatched a 90th-minute victory.
• It was 1-1 in Manchester, Sergio Agüero’s penalty cancelling out Benzema’s tenth-minute strike. Madrid ended with ten men as Álvaro Arbeloa collected a second yellow card in fouling Agüero to concede that spot kick.
• Those four points helped José Mourinho’s Madrid finish second in Group D, behind Borussia Dortmund; City, then managed by Roberto Mancini, ended bottom with three points having not won a game.
