Real Madrid vs. Man City defined by two world-class goals

Vini Jr. and De Bruyne’s goals were both just *chef’s kiss*

Real Madrid vs. Manchester City in a Champions League semifinal? Those words virtually guarantee golazos, and both teams delivered on Tuesday.

Vinícius Jr. and Kevin De Bruyne scored on incredible strikes in a tense 1-1 first-leg draw that underlined what two of the world’s top teams are capable of.

Man City did well to manage the early stages of the game, keeping Real Madrid at bay, only for Vini Jr. to continue his scintillating form by providing the opening goal. Los Blancos‘ breakthrough came on an absolute rocket from the Brazil attacker, who turned some excellent work from Eduardo Camavinga into a shot that nearly ripped a hole in the net.

“A great strike, a fantastic moment,” manager Carlo Ancelotti told BT Sport following the game. “An interesting game. Difficult for us in the first half, and the second half was much better. We had good control in the game.”

The Santiago Bernabeu was buzzing, but a typically well-worked Man City move turned into a 67th minute equalizer thanks to an unreal strike from De Bruyne. Jack Grealish and Ilkay Gündoğan brought the ball into the area, with the latter turning to lay the ball off for De Bruyne.

From 23 yards, De Bruyne used utterly perfect shooting form to produce a thunderbolt that was still rising as it flew past Thibaut Courtois.

The goal marked the third year running that De Bruyne has scored at this stage of the Champions League, a mark of the consistency of both player and club.

“He [De Bruyne] is a massive player for us,” Man City’s Rodri told BT Sport after the match. “Always he has been great, and he helped us in the moment we most needed it. We were suffering a bit because they were keeping the ball and with the goal he gave us the confidence to keep pushing. It is a good result for us.”

Pep Guardiola agreed with Ancelotti’s analysis of how the game played out, noting that “When we were better, they score. When they were better, we score.”

Grealish may have had the best summary of the level of play, the goals, the atmosphere, and everything else, telling BT Sport that he had a great time.

“I loved it, man,” said Grealish. “You can have a few nerves but these are the nights you play football for and dream of. At a stadium and a game like this, it’s like a dream come true.”

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