Jude Bellingham scored a dramatic 92nd-minute winner as Real Madrid twice came from behind to secure a 3-2 victory over Manchester City in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League (UCL) knockout round play-off.
The result marked Real Madrid’s first-ever win at the Etihad Stadium inside 90 minutes.
Before kickoff, City fans taunted Vinícius Júnior and his club with a “stop crying your heart out” message.
The Brazilian forward was at the heart of early action, seeing a penalty claim denied by an offside call before setting up Kylian Mbappé, whose effort was saved. Nathan Aké then prevented Ferland Mendy from converting another Vinícius pass.
City capitalized on their first clear opportunity when Joško Gvardiol chested the ball into Erling Haaland’s path, allowing the Norwegian to score his first-ever goal against Real Madrid. Los Blancos nearly responded as Vinícius’ deflected shot hit the crossbar.
However, City suffered a setback when Jack Grealish, who had started brightly, was forced off injured after 30 minutes. His replacement, Phil Foden, immediately tested Thibaut Courtois, while Manuel Akanji’s header clipped the bar at the other end.
At halftime, Akanji was withdrawn after struggling physically, but the intensity remained high. Haaland’s deflected shot struck the crossbar before Vinícius weaved past Rico Lewis to set up Bellingham, who headed wide.
Ederson denied Mbappé twice, but the French forward eventually found the net on the hour mark, wrongfooting Ederson with a clever finish from Dani Ceballos’ pass.
City quickly regained the lead when Ceballos fouled Foden in the box, allowing Haaland to convert from the penalty spot. However, their advantage was short-lived.
Ederson’s save from Vinícius’ shot rebounded kindly for substitute Brahim Díaz, who slotted home against his former club just two minutes after coming on.
Real completed their stunning comeback in stoppage time when Vinícius capitalized on City’s defensive hesitation, poking the ball through for Bellingham to score.
The win extends Real Madrid’s Champions League dominance with a fourth consecutive victory, while City have now won just one of their last six European games.
