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Josko Gvardiol snatched the draw of 1-1. Josko Gvardiol secured a 1-1 draw RB Leipzig in the first part. Thus, in their Champions League last-16 tie with Manchester City.
Riyad Mahrez scored City the lead. Just before the half-hour mark. Also, capped off an impressive opening for City, Premier League champions.
However, Leipzig returned with renewed energy after the break. Furthermore, at half-time replacement Benjamin Henrichs twice went close. That is, before Croatia defender Gvardiol turned in Marcel Halstenberg’s cross in the second half. City were seen snoozing from a narrow corner.
The Champions League last 16 has not been good towards Premier League teams so far in the tournament. Hence, with Tottenham and Chelsea being beaten 1-0 at home to AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund respectively. Before, Real Madrid hammered Liverpool 5-1 on the pitch at Anfield.
Manchester City appeared certain of breaking this slump, as they played with aplomb throughout the first half. Guardiola opted for an orthodox back four that he’s deployed in the past, but in training, Kyle Walker almost played as a right-winger in possession, and it was a surprise threat that Leipzig could not handle.
The consequence of Walker’s positioning was Mahrez getting to operate in the midfield. Hence, much closer to the centre forward Erling Haaland. The goal was the reward for his the position he took. Jack Grealish snaffled a slack passing pass from Xaver Schlager and then found Ilkay Gundogan. Gundogan’s skilled backheel was able to take Gvardiol off the match. Further, allowed Mahrez to score his 12th goal of the campaign.
MANCHESTER CITY LOST THE LEAD:
Manchester City did not manage to keep their lead going by scoring a Rodri goal off a Mahrez corner. Hence, narrowly avoiding Haaland before the stunning Grealish was able to curl just barely over on top of the corner.
Marco Rose’s decision of introducing Henrichs in the first half allowed Leipzig an extra offensive jolt. Furthermore, he slid his shot off the line before slamming a fantastic chance to score just before the post.
Ederson was required to save a shrewd saving move at Andre Silva. Also, divert a Timo Werner cross away from Emil Forsberg.
Haaland was able to get an opportunity to score as he smashed off the line from a narrow angle. Following, an Grealish through ball. However, the man whom he was speeding over, Gvardiol, got the goal in the second half. After Ederson made a mistake by turning Dominik Szoboszlai’s shot across the line.
Why didn’t Pep Guardiola not substitute in the match against RB Leipzig?
Guardiola was the only manager in history to not make any substitutions at all during the course of a Champions League game since Jose Mourinho replaced Manchester United’s players in tracksuits when they played Juventus in the year 2018. Since Henrichs played a pivotal role on the game however, it was confusing to see the such players as Phil Foden and Julian Alvarez put in storage, particularly as Manchester City did not have a lot of creativity due to Kevin De Bruyne absent through injuries. Then, Haaland made a grumpy face.
But Guardiola could draw attention to the team and him taking on the situation with some reason. The Manchester City manager has previously explained the reason he doesn’t want to substitute players in certain games , as he is satisfied with the pace of his squad and the general pattern for the sport. Leipzig’s equaliser came following an uproar of pressure. City had previously been unable to hold threes and twos in Europe in similar circumstances. If Foden or Alvarez had been brought in to play the game, that could increase the likelihood of a similar scenario happening yet again, and there was no reason to do that and a follow-up game to be played in Manchester.
Ederson reminds Pep Guardiola of his quality:
Ederson has been Manchester City’s undisputed No.1 since joining from Benfica in 2017 and is arguably Guardiola’s most important signing during his time at the Etihad Stadium. But there were murmurings before this game, albeit quiet ones, that it could be the right time to give impressive understudy Stefan Ortega a run. In their past four Premier League games, Manchester City have conceded from their first shot on target. There are no outright Ederson howlers in that sample size but his save percentage and xGA numbers do not make for pretty reading in 2022/23.
When Leipzig got on top after the interval, he stepped up with three fine stops from Andre Silva, Timo Werner and Dominik Szoboszlai. Leipzig scored immediately after he tipped the latter shot over the bar. Ederson had certainly earned better protection from his defence than he received.