Manchester City defeats Atletico Madrid 1-0: Kevin De Bruyne strikes the winning goal
Manchester City won against Atletico Madrid 1-0 in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final match at City of Manchester Stadium on April 6, 2022.
Kevin De Bruyne - Big game playerBoth squads will lock horns again in the return leg of the quarter-final, to be played at the Wanda Metropolitano on April 14, 2022.
Manchester City was extremely dominant over Atletico Madrid from start to finish. They gave a remarkable performance, playing with their usual possession-based football style. They had 79% possession and a one-goal lead at the end of regulation time.
Kevin De Bruyne was the sole goal scorer of the match, with one goal scored in the 70th minute.
It was a game of patience between both squads. Atletico Madrid defended well against the Premier League Champions,as they set five defenders across the pitch. Atletico managed to get a few breakthroughs during the first half but failed to get past City’s defense.
Atletico has earned a reputation for frustrating Premier League Giants in the past. They defeated Liverpool in both legs during the 2020 Champions League.
Manchester City established itself as more of a threat with the introduction of Phil Foden. He showed impressive control and vision to help produce the goal that won City the match. The English midfielder sent a perfect pass to Kevin De Bruyne through the legs of Reinildo Mandava, allowing him to break past Madrid’s wall of resistance.
De Brune scored with a low-level shot past the Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak giving City a one-goal lead.
Manchester City completely dominated the match. They took 15 shots while Atletico failed to take even one. They had a pass accuracy of 90% and got nine corners compared to Atletico Madrid’s 71% pass accuracy and zero corners.
After the victory, the manager of Manchester City, Pep Guardiola, commented, "We played an incredible top side who are difficult to face, but it is a good result."
He added, "We had chances to score a second and third. It is not easy to face a team with a lot of experience in this tournament. We will go there to score and try to win again."
The City already has one foot into the semis while the Spanish giants will have to give an improved performance in the return leg if they are to continue their Champions League journey.