Manchester City vs Leipzig Score: Champions League score, goals and report

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When his £100m signing announced himself at the Champions League void, Manchester City showed why so many are expected to recover from the disappointment of losing last season’s final and go one step further. Jack Grealish’s superb solo goal on his debut in Europe was the pick from among the nine goals scored in Al Ittihad, as Pep Guardiola’s side secured a 6-3 win over RB Leipzig.

Christopher Nkunko hit a triple for the Bundesliga visitors, but it was the kind of nights when even that was just a sideshow. Each of Nkunku’s goals brought Leipzig back to one goal. Soon, each one of them followed City’s lead over the other and regained their supremacy.

Nathan Ake, Riyad Mahrez, Joao Cancelo and Gabriel Jesus also wrote their names on the scoring sheet, while Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden returned from injury, Nordi Mukele and Angelino suffered the shame of an own goal and a red card respectively. However, Grealish will remember this night, and as a statement of intent from City against a team that was in the semi-finals in this competition just two seasons ago.

It took just over a quarter of an hour for the hack to arrive via an unexpected source. Ake struggled for form and fitness during his first year in Manchester, but this powerful header, which hit the underside of the bar, just might be the turning point his career in the Union will require. It just came when fitness concerns opened up John Stones and Aymeric Laporte to a potential springboard.

This was Ake’s first goal in the Champions League and Grealish’s first pass goal in the Champions League. His £100m signing indulged his continental arc and he was the best player on the pitch in the first half, despite having only one master around these parts. De Bruyne reminded Union of this fact with Maher running away from both Tyler Adams and Konrad Laimer on the right, before sending in a diabolically low cross.

Jack Grealish celebrates scoring for Manchester City

(Getty Images)

Nordi Mukele thought he had the situation under control, even as Grealish breathed down his neck at the far post. The Leipzig full-back started to position himself to head the ball behind the corner but was baffled by the quality of De Bruyne’s cross, and his body shape was all over. Mukiele ended up turning into his net with a restricted and controlled header. You’ll do well to see a better own goal in the Champions League this season.

City were largely in control but Guardiola discovered one area that needed improvement. RB Leipzig had plenty of space under City’s right – mostly through their aging son Angelino – and Mahrez’s failure to run back inspired several agitations from the touchline. Ultimately, Leipzig paid City to pay for their negligence, while Mukele made up for his mistake, with Emile Forsberg’s header once again across goal for Lenkonkou to nod his head.

However, as Leipzig secured a foothold in the match, City responded with a penalty kick. Lucas Klostermann was penalized for handball, after turning his back and immediately blocking Ferran Torres’ header while raising his arm. It looked tough, the kind of incident that might be overlooked in the Premier League this season, but City have benefited from a tougher continental interpretation. Mahrez went up and took the penalty kick.

Christopher Nkunko scored a hat-trick for RB Leipzig

(Getty Images)

However, City’s right side is still struggling. At the start of the second half, a De Bruyne collision allowed referee Serdar Gozobuyuk to Laymar to drive through the midfield unopposed. Off to the left of Leipzig, Dani Olmo had the time and space to cut the ball to the near post. Nkunku escaped the attention of Robin Dias to regain the lone goal margin. The game started again. However, of the nine goals scored by the evening, Grealish was on the verge of scoring the best.

He has spent many of his twenty-six years on this earth in its conception. Taking the ball up into the space on the left, driving it to his right foot, exposing some amateur Leipzig defense in the process, then wrapping his effort around an angry Peter Gulassi dive. It was some way to advertise yourself at that level. Followed by a kiss and a waving at the jubilant union in celebration.

Guardiola was the only one who didn’t smile. The City manager used Grealish’s celebration as an opportunity to reprimand Mahrez and it may have worked in the end: Leipzig’s third goal came to the right of City. Once again, it was Nkunku, this time with elaborate precision via Ederson after some complicated Leipzig play. As with the first two, any notion that this game was suddenly becoming competitive was quickly quelled.

Just a minute later, Cancelo’s 25-yard car was fifth in town. A few minutes later, Cancelo was caught by Angelino and showed his second yellow card from Leipzig to the former Leipzig player. But even with this numerical advantage, City limited himself to just one during the last quarter of an hour. Jesus joined in, raising a shot into the roof of the net from close range after a shot dead left Gulacsi stranded.

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