MATCH REPORT AND PLAYER RATINGS - REAL MADRID 3-3 MANCHESTER CITY

Image courtesy of eurosport.com

Manchester City and Real Madrid played out an enthralling 3-3 draw at the Santiago Bernabeu in a UEFA Champions League classic, putting the Blues in an excellent position to progress to the semi finals of the competition.

Despite Ederson, Kyle Walker, Nathan Ake and Kevin de Bruyne not featuring for City due to a combination of fitness issues and a lack of match sharpness, City more than held their own in arguably the world's most iconic stadium, with Real Madrid instructing their fans to wear white and closing the stadium's roof to add to the atmosphere.

The current Champions League holders got off to the perfect start in the game, as a genius free kick from Bernardo Silva caught goalkeeper Andriy Lunin off guard from long range for his eleventh strike of the season.

But Real Madrid did what Real Madrid do in the Champions League - which is to hit City with a sucker punch (helped out by a huge stroke of fortune.)

Eduardo Camavinga's long range strike - which appeared to be heading miles off target - cannoned off Ruben Dias, leaving Stefan Ortega-Moreno stranded in goal as the ball span into the empty net.

They were arguably even luckier just a few minutes later, after a quick counter attack and long ball forward from Vinicius Junior saw Rodrygo with a one vs one opportunity.

The Brazilian forward had appeared to have been neutralised by a combination of Ortega and Manuel Akanji, only for his feeble low shot to flick off the heel of Akanji and trickle into the net past the helpless German goalkeeper.

In just a few moments, Madrid were 2-1 up, and as Pep Guardiola said in his post match interview, a few seasons ago, that lead would've increased until the tie was out of City's hands.

But the treble winners are built of sterner stuff now, and saw out the rest of the first half in a controlled fashion, keeping possession patiently and only attacking when the time was right.

In the second half, City were much the better side, and looked probing going forwards. Bernardo was spearheading City's attack, with Phil Foden getting more touches of the ball and Erling Haaland occupying Madrid's centre backs (most particularly Antonio Rudiger) to create space for his teammates.

Despite City's dominance, the goal still somewhat came out of nothing. Foden collected a pass from John Stones on the edge of the box before unleashing an unstoppable effort into the top left corner to draw City level.

And just a few minutes later it was 3-2, as Josko Gvardiol - a major fitness doubt before the game - curled the ball past Lunin with his right foot from the edge of the area to score his first City goal (and, incidentally, become the first player to score for and against City in the Champions League.)

City were cruising, and had all the momentum behind them, but Madrid equalised thanks to a precise volley from Federico Valverde latching onto a cross from Vinicius aimed towards the edge of the box.

Nevertheless, a draw away from home is more than satisfactory for City, who now know that a win at the Etihad Stadium next Wednesday will secure them a place in the semi finals for the fourth consecutive season.

Real Madrid will be without key midfielder Aurelian Tchouameni due to suspension, and City will most likely be strengthened by the returns of Ederson and De Bruyne - as well as hopefully Walker and Ake - to bolster the side ahead of the run in.

Whilst I'm sure Guardiola will have preferred a controlled approach from the point of going 1-0 up, he will be perfectly satisfied with City showing their attacking prowess with three wonder goals and largely keeping Madrid at bay, with two of Carlo Ancelotti's side's goals coming thanks to luck that on another day could've fallen in City's favour.

It must also be said that referee Francois Letexier had a stunning game, not letting the raucous home atmosphere bother him and hardly putting a foot wrong all game, allowing the contest to flow with a lenient approach for both sides.

Before the second leg showdown next Wednesday, City face Luton Town at home in the Premier League, which has the potential to be a banana skin in their title race with fellow contenders Arsenal and Liverpool.

However, it will also be seen as a match for Guardiola to rest some of his big hitters ahead of the Wednesday night, namely Rodri and John Stones, with the former declaring after the game that he needs a rest and also revealing that the latter played through the pain barrier in the closing stages of last night's affair.

Here are the player ratings from the thrilling encounter against Los Blancos:

Ortega-Moreno - 7/10 - Was beaten by wicked deflections for two of Real's goals, so can't be held accountable. Made a few other routine saves and distributed well for the most part, but it was his long ball towards Mateo Kovacic that led to the build up for Valverde's late equaliser.

Akanji - 7.5/10 - Often up against either Vinicius or Rodrygo, Akanji had a solid game at the back for City, as he stepped forwards boldly when intercepting and won the ball back aggressively a few times.

Stones - 6.5/10 - Like against Crystal Palace, Stones looked a little off the pace, in what has been a frustrating season for him injury wise. Hopefully the muscular tightness he felt at the end of the game will blow over and he'll be granted a rest against Luton this weekend to ensure he's fit for Madrid on Wednesday.

Dias - 6.5/10 - His passing was often inaccurate and shaky, but in terms of actual defending, Dias had an excellent game, with one particular tackle on Jude Bellingham (who miraculously escaped from the match without a yellow card for dissent) standing out in the first half.

Gvardiol - 8/10 - Had a really solid game defensively, utilising his pace and strength intelligently to neutralise the right hand side of Madrid's attack. Opened his City account too with an excellent goal from his right foot to put the Blues ahead for the second time in the game.

Rodri - 6/10 - As the Spaniard admitted after the game, he is very, very tired, and is in dire need of a rest, which showed in an unusually sloppy performance from him. Hopefully Rodri will be granted that rest a few times before the end of the season, with the upcoming matches against Luton and Chelsea in the FA Cup providing the perfect opportunity for him to take some time off.

Foden - 7.5/10 - Was very quiet for most of the match, as he struggled to get on the ball in positions where he could hurt Madrid. He actually got more involved when he swapped with Bernardo and played out wide, and like against Burnley, saw his performance improve significantly after scoring his fantastic goal.

Kovacic - 7/10 - Neat and tidy on the ball as per usual, and slowed the game down in a way Guardiola will have liked, but to the uneducated eye could've been quicker with his passing at times. He was also arguably at fault for Real's third goal by not tracking Valverde properly, but for someone who was drafted in to start at the eleventh hour, it was not a bad performance at all from the Croatian.

Bernardo - 8.5/10 - He was robbed of the ball too easily a few times towards the end of the first half, but it was an otherwise vintage Champions League performance from Bernardo. He took the game by the scruff of the neck and drove City forward, and his freekick goal was pure genius, epitomising his entire career at City to date.

Haaland - 6.5/10 - Completely anonymous in the first half, other than one half chance from a tight angle that he did well to get on target. Grew into the game more in the second half, but his presence on the pitch in itself occupied the Real Madrid centre backs, thus creating more space for the likes of Bernardo and Foden in central attacking areas.

Grealish - 8/10 - Very rarely lost the ball, and caused Dani Carvajal an issue when running at him in one vs one duels. Made the right decision to lay the ball off to Gvardiol in the build up for the third goal, and helped the young Croatian out well with his defending.

Substitutes:

Alvarez - Not enough time to make an impact.