CHRIS SUTTON’S BIG MATCH RATINGS: Vinicius Jnr shines for Real Madrid while Erling Haaland struggles
Manchester City came back from behind on Tuesday evening in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid.
Vinicius Junior put the hosts ahead on the stroke of half-time despite a dominant opening of the game from City.
Kevin de Bruyne then tied the score with a superb strike from the outside of the foot in the second half.
Pep Guardiola’s side will be the luckier of the two as they prepare for a home game with nothing to split the sides.
Here, CHRIS SUTTON from Mail Sport takes a look at how each player fared during their duel at the Bernabeu.
Vinicius Jr. (right) opened the scoring for Real Madrid despite a dominant start to the game from Manchester City
Kevin De Bruyne tied the score with a classy strike with the outside of his foot
Erling Haaland struggled to live up to the high standards he has set for himself in recent weeks
RealMadrid
Thibault Courtois 8
Warmed his gloves by denying De Bruyne and Rodri from distance and then made some clever saves. But could not stop De Bruyne from shooting in the second half.
Daniel Carvajal 5
Forget the Ballon d’Or – Carvajal went for the Fallon d’Floor when he pretended that Grealish had hit him. You lose a point for that ridiculous simulation!
Antonio Rudiger 7
Eder Militao’s suspension was a blow to Real, but Rüdiger enjoyed the physical challenge with Haaland from start to finish as he was strong and tight.
David Alaba 7.5
Brilliant block to deny Haaland in the second half. Alaba is not the tallest at 1.75m, but City rarely tested his limitations with crosses to Haaland.
Eduardo Camavinga 6.5
His quick run from his own half, after a nice one-two with Modric, opened City. But it was his sloppy ball that led to the equalizer.
David Alaba did an excellent job of keeping the dangerous Haaland quiet
Karim Benzema kept the ball high for the hosts in a way few strikers in world football can
Federico Valverde6
Uber-fit soccer player who is here, there, everywhere. He would have liked more of the ball, but Valverde put in a disciplined performance from midfield.
Tony Kroos 6
He had made the most passes of any midfielder in the Champions League this season, but his input was limited as Real struggled to keep possession.
Luka Modric 7
Barely touched the ball in the first half, but his one-touch helped create the opening goal, as Camavinga gladly accepted the invitation to fly forward.
Rodrygo 6
The winger who broke City hearts with two goals last season. He tried to let go of Benzema with a ball behind, but Ederson rushed out to smother him. Also had a quiet night.
Karim Benzema 8
History has taught us that Benzema likes to play against English teams. Few footballers can keep the ball as high as this rose between two thorns in Rodrygo and Vinicius. You can’t rest with him in the front.
Vinicius Junior 8.5
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why Vinicius was billed as Real’s most dangerous man. The power. The accuracy. It was a super strike to put City ahead.
Carlo Ancelotti7
Even as City asserted their dominance, Ancelotti looked cool as ever, confident that Real would eventually do what Real do. They did, thanks to Vinicius, but it’s all in next week’s second stage now.
Luka Modric wasn’t hugely involved in the first half but made a lovely touch leading up to Vinicius’ goal
Carlo Ancelotti was booked for protesting to the referees after City scored
Manchester City
Edson 7
One of the world’s best goalkeepers, but even he couldn’t get close to Vinicius’ missile. Crucially, he was able to deny Benzema’s header.
Kyle Walker 7
With a top speed of 35mph, Walker was brought in to stop Vinicius and he did well until the Brazilian stepped in to score that screamer.
John Stone 7
Although Stones was more of a central defender than a right back, he still made his way into midfield to help move the game forward and showed excellent composure on the ball.
Reuben Dias 7
What a slide to prevent the ball from dripping from Vinicius to Benzema for a tap. Big moment, that, and I was gutted that a screamer beat them.
Manuel Akanji6
Facing Rodrygo in Nathan Ake’s absence. Akanji isn’t necessarily a marauding left-back, but defensively he didn’t do much wrong.
Rodry 7
Although City conceded first, they dominated the midfield with the help of Rodri. He stole the ball back before De Bruyne played beautifully in the second half.
Bernardo Silva 6.5
In hindsight, he wishes he fouled Camavinga and took the caution for the opener, but Silva worked hard on both offense and defense.
Kevin De Bruyne8
Outside the right boot – bang – and City were tied. We waited for De Bruyne to turn it on like only he can, and then he finally did.
John Stones continued to excel on the ball as he ventured into midfield
Aside from the goal, Kyle Walker handled Vinicius well and seemed as quick as ever
Ilkay Gundogan 6
Gundogan was key to City’s early dominance and he was on the receiving end of a number of relentless challenges before knocking off De Bruyne’s belter.
Jack Grealish 6.5
He looked like the £100 million man of late and I’m already looking forward to seeing his fight with Carvajal again. Like Silva, he worked hard and gave City scope.
Erling Haland 5
“A monster is coming to visit,” said the front page of the Spanish newspaper Marca. But the monster did not roar here. Haaland had a quiet evening by his spectacular standards.
Pep Guardiola 7
He claimed he was not out for revenge. Surrender. Of course you were! Overall, Guardiola cannot be disappointed. He will be proud of this achievement.