Match Report: City 2 - 3 Real Madrid

Late comeback denies famous City victory

By Aaron Leggott

In 1998, Manchester City were the laughing stock of English football. A combination of poor management, terrible ownership and a less than average playing staff meant this historic club were rotting in the depths of the third tier. 

From Bootham Crescent to the Bernabeau: It's been a big transformation
Photo: PacificCoastNews.com

There seemed to be no way out, and the club were going backwards. And to think that 14 years later, City fans were planning a trip to the Santiago Bernabeau to play the world's most historically decorated football team is a fairy tale story.

And despite a 3-2 loss last night in our opening Champions League game against the Spanish champions, we can hold our heads up high and be proud to have played so well on such a big stage.

Goals from Edin Dzeko and Aleksandar Kolarov saw the Blues take the lead twice against Madrid, only to be pegged back each time, and lose all three points with minutes to play.

International Duty: How have our players done this weekend?

Well, I think it's quite apt to start with England, considering we had 6 players picked for the squad for the 2 matches this week. Joe Hart and Gareth Barry started for England last night in a side which beat Bulgaria 3-0. James Milner and Adam Johnson also made appearances from the bench.


Hart was a spectator for most of the match, but made a good reaction save in the second half, as well as misjudging a cross. Good performance on an unpredictable pitch.
Barry continued his impressive start to the season and even grabbed an assist for the first goal.
Milner and Johnson were both late substitutes and didn't really have enough time to show their worth. Milner did prove his versatility by slotting into a more central attacking midfield role though.