Champions League: Man City let Real Madrid off the hook in seven-goal

Manchester City has a narrow lead to protect in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid, which they won 4-3 at the Etihad on Tuesday.

After establishing a two-goal lead three times, the English champions may live to regret not finishing off the 13-time champions.

Pep Guardiola’s side had Kevin De Bruyne, Gabriel Jesus, Phil Foden, and Bernardo Silva on target, but they should have scored a lot more.

However, a double from Karim Benzema and a magnificent individual effort from Vinicius Junior gave Madrid hope of staging another epic Champions League comeback on May 4 at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Guardiola expressed sorrow for allowing Liverpool to stay “alive” in the Premier League championship chase after a 2-2 draw at the Etihad nine days ago, and he will have similar thoughts after a feisty start that should have seen City go 4-0 up inside half an hour.

Madrid was in their 30th semi-final compared to City’s third, but the English champions were pre-tie favourites from the start.

Riyad Mahrez’s fast feet and exquisite cross for De Bruyne to stoop and head beyond Thibaut Courtois had only taken 92 seconds to break the Madrid backline.

Guardiola has been chastised for overthinking his team selection in the Champions League’s final stages.

But his choice to play Jesus as a centre striker, in contrast to the previous two seasons, was inspired, as the Brazilian drove the Real defence ragged.

After David Alaba failed to deal with De Bruyne’s cross, Jesus pounced to make it 2-0 after just 10 minutes.

Casemiro was missing for the Spanish champions-elect, and it showed as City cut through midfield at will on the counter-attack.

Guardiola was enraged with Mahrez after he slammed into the side-netting while Foden was waiting for the ball to be crossed for a tap-in.

Moments later, it was Foden who squandered a golden opportunity by dragging wide another perfect De Bruyne through the pass.

Benzema praises Madrid

Benzema had hauled Madrid back from the brink of elimination against PSG and Chelsea in the previous two rounds, and he came to his team’s rescue once more before halftime.

From Ferland Mendy’s cross, the Frenchman cushioned in his 40th goal of the season.

Madrid’s strong work in calming the ship near the end of the first half, though, was undone by a poor start after the break.

When Mahrez was one-on-one with Courtois, he hit the post, but Dani Carvajal blocked Foden’s follow-up on the line.

After replacing the injured John Stones in the first half, Fernandinho was forced to deputise at right-back.

And the City captain was involved in two goals in two minutes, one at each end.

To begin, he chose Foden to restore City’s two-goal advantage.

Vinicius, however, proved his age by sprinting free of his Brazilian compatriot from the halfway line and sliding past Ederson.

Carlo Ancelotti’s side continued to produce chances at an alarming rate, but it needed something extraordinary when they finally got a fourth.

On the edge of the box, Oleksandr Zinchenko was fouled, but Romanian referee Istvan Kovacs took advantage, and Silva smashed into the top corner.

City failed to break the stalemate once more when Mahrez came within inches of finding the far corner from the tightest of angles.

Aymeric Laporte handled inside the area eight minutes from time, providing a finishing twist.

As Benzema chipped the spot-kick down the centre to put the tie on a knife’s edge heading back to the Spanish capital, he was the coolest guy in the stadium.

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