Real Madrid 1-2 Manchester City, UEFA Champions League: Haaland Leads Fightback Against Mbappe-Less Hosts

Manchester City came from behind to defeat Real Madrid 2-1 in the Champions League and pile more pressure on Xabi Alonso.

Erling Haaland's 43rd-minute penalty completed a first-half turnaround for the visitors at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Madrid, playing without the injured Kylian Mbappe, who was an unused substitute, took the lead after a positive start to Wednesday's contest, when Rodrygo snapped a 32-game scoreless streak with a fine finish from a tight angle.

Rodrygo's opener came in the 28th minute, by which time Madrid had already had a penalty awarded but then overturned by VAR, with Matheus Nunes' foul on Vinicius Junior taking place outside of the box.

But Madrid wilted after Nico O'Reilly turned in his first Champions League goal from point-blank range after Thibaut Courtois spilled Josko Gvardiol's header.

City's comeback was complete eight minutes later, when Haaland slotted home from the spot after he had been hauled down by Antonio Rudiger, with the penalty awarded after a VAR check.

Courtois made a superb double save to keep Madrid in it, but Los Blancos could not add to their solitary shot on target in a second half that saw Vinicius squander two great chances while Endrick hit the crossbar, as City surged up to fourth spot in the standings.

Data Debrief: Madrid miss Mbappe as City capitalise

The pressure truly is on Alonso, who is under massive scrutiny just six months after joining Madrid. There is even speculation that this game could prove to be his last in charge if he failed to win it. Time will tell on that front.

Alonso will lament that Mbappe was not fit enough to feature, and without the Frenchman, who has been involved in eight goals in seven Champions League games against City, Madrid were toothless, despite generating plenty of openings. They managed just one shot on target from 16 attempts in total.

City, on the other hand, had eight shots on target from 12 attempts. They accumulated 2.58 expected goals (xG), albeit a good chunk of that was due to the penalty.

Haaland has now netted 51 Champions League goals in the 50 games he has started in the competition. His overall tally stands at 55 goals in 54 appearances. The 25-year-old became only the third player to score in four or more consecutive Champions League away fixtures for City, after Sergio Aguero (seven in 2019) and Phil Foden (four in 2024).