Manchester City

Man City player ratings vs Real Madrid: Kevin De Bruyne steps up while Erling Haaland struggles in Champions League semi-final

Richard Martin
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Erling Haaland Manchester City 2022-23
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The Belgian's stunning strike gave Pep Guardiola's side a creditable 1-1 draw at Santiago Bernabeu, but their star forward was not at his best

Kevin De Bruyne launched a missile to shoot down Real Madrid and earn Manchester City a fine 1-1 draw in the Champions League semi-final first leg.

City dominated the first half but fell behind to a thunderbolt from Vinicius Jr. Pep Guardiola's side then were on the backfoot for chunks of the second period before De Bruyne delivered the perfect response, showing that whatever the Brazilian winger could do, he could do better.

Erling Haaland, however, had a frustrating night and was given a rough ride by Madrid's two centre-backs, Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba.

GOAL rates Man City's players from Santiago Bernabeu...

Editors' Picks

  1. Goalkeeper & Defence
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    Goalkeeper & Defence

    Ederson (7/10):

    Never stood a chance with Vinicius' thunderbolt. Didn't have to make many saves but was quick off his line to swipe the ball from Benzema's feet and then kept out the Frenchman's close-range header. Stayed alert until the end, tipping away Tchouameni's vicious strike.

    Kyle Walker (6/10):

    Struggled to contain Vinicius at times but mostly stood his ground.

    John Stones (6/10):

    Defended well and contributed to the team's long periods of possession in the first half.

    Ruben Dias (8/10):

    Anticipated the game well and made a tremendous sliding block to prevent Benzema being played in by Vinicius.

    Manuel Akanji (6/10):

    Very solid on the left-hand side but does not offer the attacking threat of Nathan Ake.

  2. Midfield
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    Midfield

    Kevin De Bruyne (8/10):

    Couldn't have hit the ball better for the equaliser.

    Rodri (7/10):

    Was out-foxed by Camavinga in the build up to Madrid's goal and struggled at times in the second half. Made amends by stealing the ball back deep in the opposition half to help set up De Bruyne.

    Bernardo Silva (7/10):

    Passed the ball fluidly and helped City control the game for so long.

  4. Attack
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    Attack

    Ilkay Gundogan (8/10):

    Heavily involved in City's build-up play and put himself about physically. Teed De Bruyne up for the equaliser.

    Erling Haaland (5/10):

    Met his match in Alaba and Rudiger, who kept tight on him, with Alaba making a superb slide tackle to block his shot. Couldn't trouble Courtois with any of his shots.

    Jack Grealish (8/10):

    Ran Real ragged for much of the first half. Had to work harder defensively in the second but played his part in the equaliser, probing down the left and slipping the ball to Gundogan on its way to De Bruyne.

  5. Subs & Manager
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    Subs & Manager

    Pep Guardiola (8/10):

    Stuck to what he knows best with a gameplan designed to control the game and keep the Bernabeu quiet. It worked for the majority of the match and this is a strong result to take back to the Etihad Stadium.