Manchester City will have plenty of work to do in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League round of 16 tie with RB Leipzig after letting a late lead slip away in a 1-1 draw at Red Bull Arena on Wednesday.
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It was Riyad Mahrez who opened the scoring just before the half-hour mark, as the Algerian received a pass from Ilkay Gundogan and let the ball roll through the legs of Josko Gvardiol before hammering a first-time, left-footed strike inside the far post. Ironically, it was the press that gave Leipzig fits and saw Manchester City win the ball high up the field and led to the goal.
RB Leipzig drew level on 70 minutes, and in truth it had been coming for most of the second half. Marcel Halstenberg served up a corner kick toward the top of the six-yard box, where Gvardiol, whose price tag is only still rising after his star turn at the 2022 World Cup, rose highest and headed past Ederson to make it 1-1.
Stars of the show
Riyad Mahrez: Scored the game’s opening goal and very nearly made it 2-0 just minutes into the second half, if not for a last-gasp block inside the six-yard box. Not a bad way to celebrate his 32nd birthday (Tuesday).
Josko Gvardiol: The 21-year-old Croatian center back, who will almost certainly move to a new club (Man City?) for a fee in the neighborhood of $100 million this summer, helped to keep Erling Haaland quiet on the night and kept his side in the tie heading into leg no. 2.
What’s next?
RB Leipzig will head to Manchester for the second leg and try to shock the world once more at Etihad Stadium on March 14.
How to watch RB Leipzig vs Manchester City live, stream link, kick off time
Date/Time: Wednesday, February 22 at 3pm ET
Stats: Via scoreboard on NBCSports.com
How to watch: TUDN, Paramount+
"As smooth as the back of a spoon!"
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) February 22, 2023
Riyad Mahrez punishes Leipzig. 🥄 pic.twitter.com/tps7UtTvgd
Joško Gvardiol catches Ederson dancing on his line and Leipzig are back in this one. 🌶 pic.twitter.com/D1uWIRZ76p
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) February 22, 2023
RB Leipzig vs Manchester City head-to-head record
These two teams have only faced each other twice before and that came in the Champions League group stage last season. City won at home 6-3 in an incredible game which saw Nkunku score a hat trick for Leipzig, while the final group stage game (City were confirmed as group winners and Leipzig had to settle for third) saw Leipzig win 2-1 at home in an empty stadium.
Key storylines
All of the pressure is on Man City heading into this last 16 clash and that should suit Leipzig pretty well. They have shown they can sit back and defend and then punish teams on the counter and although Nkunku is just back from injury, he suffered a slight setback in training ahead of this game. City should win with Erling Haaland particularly hungry in the Champions League and he knows this Leipzig side well. This will be an intriguing first leg, especially with Kevin de Bruyne, John Stones and Aymeric Laporte all missing for City.
RB Leipzig team news, lineup options
OUT: Abdou Diallo (knee), Peter Gulacsi (knee), Dani Olmo (muscle); DOUBT: Christopher Nkunku (muscle)
Our XI to face @ManCity! 📋
— RB Leipzig English (@RBLeipzig_EN) February 22, 2023
#RBLMCI pic.twitter.com/EAbqdf7YKJ
Manchester City team news, lineup options
OUT: John Stones (thigh), Kevin de Bruyne (unknown), Aymeric Laporte (unknown)
TEAM NEWS 🚨
— Manchester City (@ManCity) February 22, 2023
XI | Ederson, Walker, Akanji, Dias, Ake, Rodrigo, Gundogan (C), Bernardo, Mahrez, Grealish, Haaland
SUBS | Ortega Moreno, Carson, Phillips, Alvarez, Gomez, Perrone, Foden, Charles, Palmer, Lewis, Robertson#ManCity pic.twitter.com/8dPv7mxJ4G
