Manchester City took full advantage in their UEFA Champions League last 16 tie against FC Copenhagen with a comfortable 3-1 win at Parken on Tuesday (February 13).
It was a lively first half between the two European sides and City took the lead in the 10th minute through the in-form Kevin De Bruyne. The Belgian playmaker has only just returned from a long-term but he’s immediately bounced back.
Phil Foden was in the thick of the action as he has been throughout this season, finding De Bruyne with a clever through ball. The Cityzens superstar raced into Copenhagen’s box before tucking away a composed finish past Polish goalkeeper Kamil Grabara.
There was cause for concern in the 21st minute when Jack Grealish hobbled off with a leg problem. He was replaced by Jeremy Doku as his manager Pep Guardiola comforted him.
Manchester City were on top and nearly grabbed a second two minutes later and Doku was involved. The young Belgian winger played a reverse pass to Bernardo Silva and the Portugal international’s cross deflected off Slovakian defender Denis Vavro and ricocheted off the crossbar.
However, the Danish outfit found a surprise equalizer against the run of play in the 34th minute. It was a moment City goalkeeper Ederson won’t want to watch back.
Ederson’s tame clearance was pounced on by former Southampton attacker Mohamed Elyounoussi. He tried his luck but his attempt was blocked before the ball fell to debutant Magnus Mattsson and the Danish midfielder fired past the Manchester City shot-stopper with aplomb.
The visitors were reeling and Guardiola looked for an immediate reaction from his men. He got one when Silva conjured up a moment of magic in the 45th minute courtesy of a De Bruyne assist.
The Belgian took a heavy touch but the ball bounced off Mattson before falling into Silva’s path. The attacking midfielder sweetly lifted the ball over Grabara and put his side back in the lead on the stroke of halftime.
Manchester City continued to dominate in the second half and really should have been better at converting their chances. That was the case for a surprisingly quiet Erling Haaland in the 63rd minute when the Norweigan striker failed to beat Grabara with a header.
The Polish goalkeeper was having a good game and he prevented Doku with a superb save six minutes later. He was at it again in the 90 1st minute, producing two excellent saves.
However, he couldn’t do anything about Foden’s strike a minute later. The in-form English attacker was found with an astute cutback by De Bruyne and he smashed past the Pole.
The reigning European champions deserved their victory and Ederson was fortunate De Bruyne and Silva were on hand to spare his blushes. They take a 2-1 lead back to the Etihad for the second leg on March 6.
One fan was adamant that Foden is superior to Real Madrid superstar Vinicius Junior:
“Phil foden is better than Vinicius Jr.”
Another fan is stunned by De Bruyne’s incredible post-injury form:
“Did KDB fake his injury because he is too good to be coming back from long term injury.”
Here’s how fans on X (formerly Twitter) reacted to Manchester City’s victory:
Phil foden is better than Vinicius Jr.
— 𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐧 (@fcbharrison) February 13, 2024
Did KDB fake his injury because he is too good to be coming back from long term injury😭😭😭
— BlueWall (fan) (@diasnation) February 13, 2024
Tim Sherwood takes aim at Ederson for his blunder in Manchester City’s win against Copenhagen
Manchester City came away with a victory in the first leg of their last 16 tie with Copenhagen. But, Ederson had a moment of madness and his calamity was slammed by Tim Sherwood.
The former Tottenham Hotspur manager was covering the game for Sky Sports. He was astounded by Ederson’s error and suggested Guardiola would have been furious with the Brazilian:
“If you’re Guardiola you must be absolutely devastated with your goalkeeper there. He must be bored, he’s bored doing nothing. All of a sudden he wants to entertain himself and he’s cost his team.”
Ederson has been extremely reliable for Manchester City this season, keeping 10 clean sheets in 30 games across competitions. The Brazil international is regarded as one of Europe’s finest ball-playing goalkeepers but can be guilty of the odd mistake as was the case tonight.
Thank You!