City roar into CL quarters after ex-Liverpool keeper’s howler; Madrid survive HUGE scare: Wrap
Manchester City cruised into the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals with a second-straight 3-1 win over FC Copenhagen, while Real Madrid were pushed all the way by RB Leipzig but narrowly escaped.
Defending champions City won the first leg 3-1 and needed just five minutes to stretch that advantage in the second leg, with centre-back Manuel Akanji volleying exquisitely from a Julian Alvarez corner.
In the ninth minute, Alvarez doubled the lead with a cross-shot straight at goalkeeper Kamil Grabara – only for the former Liverpool gloveman to horribly let it slip through his hands into the net.
Speaking on Sky Sports, former England star Paul Merson claimed: “My six-year-old would have caught that!”
Grabara, the captain, infamously had a public spat with Socceroos keeper Maty Ryan over the starting position at Copenhagen, leading to Ryan leaving the club for AZ Alkmaar in the Netherlands.
But Copenhagen hit back through an exceptional counter-attack just before the half-hour mark, with former Southampton star Mohamed Elyounoussi finishing off a well-worked move.
City responded before the interval when Erling Haaland clinically swept home from a cut-back.
While they comfortably cruised towards victory, City did cop a second-half blow as Matheus Nunes appeared to dislocate a finger in the second stanza - though he was seen smiling on the bench after having the joint realigned by team medicos.
City turned to a number of youngsters off the bench and came close to extending their advantage on multiple occasions.
City rested a host of stars for the second leg, making seven changes from their 3-1 win over Manchester United on the weekend.
It comes ahead of a massive clash with Premier League title rivals Liverpool on the weekend,
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