Two polar opposite matches, two victories for the big teams in the Champions League. Real Madrid and Manchester City scored two important wins in their respective round of 16 matches against Red Bull Leipzig and Copenhagen. The opening matches that marked the return of the competition after the long winter break were very different from each other. The Blancos' match was decided by a goal from Brahim Diaz, while Guardiola once again saw his attacking midfielders, De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva and Foden, put their stamp on the match.
Red Bull Leipzig-Real Madrid 0-1
The Blancos' match was quite difficult, with the Germans not giving in to the talent of the Spaniards. The first half started with a jolt for Carlo Ancelotti, who fell behind after two minutes, but was saved by the linesman. Few other highlights during the first 45', with the second half that ignited the match. The two teams started to raise the pace and after a few minutes came the goal from Brahim Diaz who, after dribbling past the opposing defense, opened the scoring with a curling shot from outside the area, which then proved to be the winning goal. Dani Olmo and Benjamin Sesko gave Lunin a scare on several occasions, with Leipzig having many more chances. The defensive solidity, however, did not allow the Germans to find the equalizer and so Real Madrid took home an important victory with minimal effort.
Copenhagen-Manchester City 1-3
Much less balanced was Copenhagen-Manchester City, with the English winning 3-1 thanks to the talent of Guardiola's players. Kevin De Bruyne opened the scoring after 10 minutes, then at 34' the Danes took advantage of a mistake by Ederson, who passed the ball to the opponents. Achouri's shot was blocked, but Matsson arrived and shot first time to inflate the net, signing the 1-1 at 34'. The balance lasted barely 11 minutes with Bernardo Silva finding the corner on the left and putting the Citizens back in the lead. The second half continued one-sided, with the English unable to break through Grabara despite the 26 total shots at the end of the match. In the final minutes, Phil Foden arrived to definitively close the contest by turning in a pass in the heart of the area with the goalkeeper beaten.
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