Champions League: RB Leipzig and Manchester City leave in a draw
Riyad Mahrez, scorer for Manchester City against Leipzig, February 22, 2023. AFP - ODD ANDERSEN
Text by: Farid Achache Follow
3 mins
Leipzig and Manchester City left in a draw this Wednesday, February 22 at the Red Bull Arena for the round of 16 first leg.
After Riyad Mahrez's opener in a bland first half, Leipzig came back with better intentions and deserved their equalizer against Citizens and an uninspired Erling Haaland.
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Beaten by Leipzig in the group stage last season, Manchester City had to be wary of the German club.
Moreover, the Citizens are waiting for the 14th minute to make their first shot when Ruben Dias places a header after a corner kick from Riyad Mahrez, Blaswich blocks the ball without worry.
Despite overwhelming ball possession, City failed to build to endanger Leipzig, which defended well.
In the 27th minute, Mahrez finally opened the scoring with a cross shot from the left on a careless error from the Germans, his third goal in seven C1 games this season.
Leipzig's first mistake is punished in this soporific encounter.
At the end of the first period, the Germans show only one shot on the static table, with Werner, the ball is captured by Ederson (45th + 1).
In the second half, the game took on a completely different face and Leipzig started to play.
Returning with much better intentions, the Germans got a first good chance.
On the left, Halstenberg offers a center that Benjamin Henrichs takes over.
But the former Monegasque does not fit his head (53rd).
Henrichs, again, is not far from equalizing with a flat foot at ground level in the area which is too crossed (55th).
From a corner, the Germans who decided to play scored the equalizing goal thanks to the header of the Croatian Joško Gvardiol (70th).
Where did Haaland go?
Tonight, Erling Haaland was once again expected.
But the international did not exist during the first 45 minutes.
The center forward only touched seven balls.
The fault of a team that has not put rhythm into its game. Not qualified for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar with Norway, Haaland consoles himself by still panicking the counters with 26 goals in the league and 5 in C1.
In his first match in the biggest European competition, in 2019, he had scored a hat-trick in 45 minutes during the correction inflicted by the Austrians on the Belgians of Genk (6-2).
Since then, Erling Haaland has scored 28 goals in 23 games, including five in four group matches with City.
If he has already pushed to the quarter-finals with Dortmund, in 2021, before falling against City (2-1, 2-1), Haaland knows that expectations about him are now much higher.
But when the Norwegian colossus is well marked by the opposing defense, Manchester City can count on the individual flashes of Riyad Mahrez.
It took until the 68th minute to see his first real goalscoring ball.
Served by Gündogan from 30 meters, the striker overtakes Gvardiol and tries to cross with the right foot, but it is not on target and too crushed for his only shot in 19 balls.
The Round of 16 second leg will take place on March 14 at the Etihad Stadium and anything is possible for either team.
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