Man City get two goal lead vs Copenhagen and think about 1/4-finals

Manchester City secured a 3-1 victory away in the first leg of the Champions League Round of 16 against Copenhagen. This triumph marked a first win for the Citizens at “Parken,” following their two previous away matches in the Danish capital that ended in draws.

The first significant opportunity in the match was for Manchester City. Nathan Ake delivered a left-wing cross, and Kevin De Bruyne headed the ball just wide of the goal. Shortly after, Ruben Dias connected with a cross from Kyle Walker, but goalkeeper Kamil Grabara managed to parry the attempt. The ball fell to Ake, but the Dutchman couldn’t find the target from close range.

The pressure from the Citizens paid off in the 11th minute. Phil Foden received the ball from the right and passed it to Kevin De Bruyne. The Belgian controlled the ball on the right side of the penalty area and found the far corner to make it 0-1.

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In the 34th minute, Copenhagen equalized with their first real opportunity. Ederson made a mistake trying to clear the ball, gifting it to Mohamed Elyounoussi. The Norwegian attempted a shot that got blocked, but Magnus Mattsson, with a brilliant finish from the edge of the box, left no chance for the visitors’ goalkeeper – 1-1.

City restored their lead in the 45th minute. The ball reached Bernardo Silva after a deflection off De Bruyne. The Portuguese forward found himself in a scoring position and clinically finished to beat Grabara for 1-2.

In the 87th minute, Grabara saved a free-kick from De Bruyne. In added time of the second half, the home team’s goalkeeper denied shots from Haaland and Nunez. Moments later, Foden advanced from the right and passed to De Bruyne. The Belgian, with a powerful shot, sealed the final score at 1-3.