Manchester City scripted a late comeback as they stunned Borussia Dortmund in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday night.
An Erling Haaland stunner ensured Manchester City remained on the right path as they have now secured back to back wins on the continental front. But the Cityzens were not their usual self since the first minute as Dortmund managed to frustrate them with a relentless defensive display. The Black and Yellows almost spoiled City’s plan as Pep Guardiola’s side looked pretty sloppy in the first half.
A Jude Bellingham header in 56th minute had appeared to be the winner as Manchester City huffed and puffed to find a solution, with their talismanic striker Erling Haaland cutting a sorry figure in the final third. The Norwegian was kept at bay by the Dortmund duo of Mats Hummels and Niklas Sule, and any kind of half chances also got snuffed out by them.
The home side had to wait until the 80th minute as John Stones unleashed a powerful drive just outside the box to restore parity in the game. And then Haaland came with a bit of magic from nowhere as he came back to haunt his former team on one of the bigger stages of football.
Joao Cancelo’s stunning cross from the outside of his right boot met Haaland who jumped in the air and thumped an acrobatic volley with the outside of his left boot to net the winner. City have now two wins in two and are firm favourites to secure an entry into the next stage of the competition. The Hard Tackle runs the rule over Pep Guardiola and Edin Terzic’s men.
A thrilling finale at the Etihad! ??
FT: Man City 2-1 Dortmund pic.twitter.com/RTGzw2tDP4
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) September 14, 2022
Manchester City
Ederson Moraes: 6/10
Despite Borussia Dortmund firing ahead, the Brazilian had a quiet day in the goal. He did not face much of the Dortmund wrath as he was a mere spectator of the game.
John Stones: 7/10
Full marks for the thunderbolt he produced to bring his side into the game. Stones started in a very unconventional right-back position and did decently as he tried to offer some width down the right channel.
Manuel Akanji: 6/10
Akanji was not impressive against his former club Borussia Dortmund. He could have definitely done better in some key moments.
Nathan Ake: 7/10
Ake was solid at the back and denied the Dortmund attackers any room to have in the game. He passed the ball accurately even in a tight corner and might turn out to be an asset in the near future.
Joao Cancelo: 7/10
The Cancelo assist. The Haaland finish.
Too fake. pic.twitter.com/51lcbOU3CI
— VERSUS (@vsrsus) September 14, 2022
The Portuguese international started at left-back and was good enough to do the damage with a brilliant out of the boot floating cross to Erling Haaland for the match-winner.
Rodri: 7/10
The Spanish destroyer assured protection by breaking up play, and he dictated the tempo with his crisp passing movement around the pitch.
Kevin De Bruyne: 6/10
De Bruyne tried his best to find a solution to unlock Dortmund’s defence. But the German giants were ready to plug the gap as they did for most of the match.
Ilkay Gundogan: 6/10
The German international found it hard to unlock the gritty backline, and his movement was also blocked by the opponent’s defenders.
Riyad Mahrez: 6/10
Mahrez was very active on the right wing but his knack for getting on the ball with his left foot was effectively shunned by Dortmund.
Erling Haaland: 7.5/10
Haaland did not participate in the build-up play at all, but his moment of madness will definitely get the due credit.
26 goals in 21 Champions League games. Oh, and what a goal guys. Erling Haaland. ???? #UCL
…and he already scored 13 goals as Man City player in one month. pic.twitter.com/hNZXtnjehq
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 14, 2022
Jack Grealish: 5/10
Grealish did not look like a £100 million player at all and was sluggish on the night.
SUBSTITUTES
Bernardo Silva: 6.5/10
Silva had the intent of doing something creative and always looked dangerous while going forward.
Phil Foden: 6/10
Foden kept ticking the tempo and raised the bar.
Julian Alvarez: 6/10
Alvarez added some much needed freshness and intensity to the game.
Kalvin Phillips: N/A
Did not play enough to warrant a rating.
Borussia Dortmund
Alexander Meyer: 6/10
The Borussia Dortmund goalkeeper did everything he could do to keep his side in the game. Both goals were definitely not his fault, although he should have stopped Stones’ fiery drive.
Thomas Meunier: 6/10
Both Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva stretched Meunier at times, but he kept his fort intact. His crossing needs improvement.
Mats Hummels: 8/10
Despite Manchester City running away with the win, Hummels brought all his experience into the match and denied Haaland a couple of decisive moments.
Niklas Sule: 8/10
Sule had an excellent outing pairing with Hummels at the back. The former Bayern Munich defender was alert and even prevented Manchester City from causing any damage in the first half when a Mahrez cross targeted Haaland.
Raphael Guerreiro: 6/10
Guerreiro held his ground very well and was defensively pretty astute. But he offered very little offensively.
Salih Ozcan: 6.5/10
Ozcan provided the necessary cover at the back and also went ahead while combining with Marco Reus and Guerreiro.
Jude Bellingham: 8/10
Bellingham ran the show for Dortmund. He upped the ante with his visionary passing across the pitch and worked tiring continuously to gain some momentum for his team. Had to be praised for his positioning sense at the time of the goal.
Jude Bellingham now has four Champions League goals! ?
The most ever by an English teenager in the competition.#UCL pic.twitter.com/BNMdiijzoo
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) September 14, 2022
Emre Can: 6/10
Can put in a decent shift in the midfield.
Giovanni Reyna: 6/10
The youngster was full of energy but did not have the desired impact in the end.
Marco Reus: 7/10
Reus had some wonderful moments, especially when he performed a feint to wrong foot Akanji, only for the ball to go in for a corner. He also supplied the cross for Bellingham’s goal.
Anthony Modeste: 5.5/10
Modeste hardly threatened the Manchester City defence and needs to step up considerably.
SUBSTITUTES
Donyell Malen: 6/10
Malen almost had his moment when he shrugged off a couple of Manchester City defenders to unleash a shot only to see it side netting.
Nico Schlotterbeck: 5/10
Schlotterbeck as brought in to maintain the clean sheet, but that did not happen.
Youssoufa Moukoko: N/A
Did not play enough to warrant a rating.
