Manchester City and Real Madrid win in Champions League: Stats
Defending champions Manchester City beat FC Copenhagen in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 tie away. City ran 3-1 winners with goals from Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden. Meanwhile, Real Madrid earned a hard-fought 1-0 win away against German club RB Leipzig. Brahim Diaz was the lone scorer for the side. Here's more.
98 goals and 152 assists for De Bruyne
De Bruyne scored City's opener in the 10th minute. He scored his 98th goal for the club in all competitions from 364 matches. Since his recent return from a long-term injury, De Bruyne has already clocked six assists and two goals in eight appearances across competitions. De Bruyne, who assisted Silva for the second goal, now has 152 assists for Manchester City.
25 goals involvement for Foden this season
Playing his sixth Champions League match this season, Foden has raced to four goals. He also raced to three assists, having set up De Bruyne for the opener. In all competitions this season, the Englishman has clocked 15 goals and 10 assists to take his goals involvement to 25. Meanwhile, Silva managed his 8th goal for City this season and 63rd overall.
City script history in the Champions League
As per Opta, City are the first team in Champions League history to score three-plus goals in seven consecutive matches. City have won each of their last 11 matches in all competitions. This is their longest run since a series of 21-game run between December 2020 and March 2021. City have won four successive away UCL games for just the 2nd time.
Massive records for De Bruyne
De Bruyne is the fourth player to score at least 10 goals in the knockout stages of the Champions League since 2019-20, along with Karim Benzema (17), Erling Haaland (13) and Robert Lewandowski (11). KDB and Silva have seen each of their last 10 UCL goals come in the knockout stages. Only Benzema (a run of 14 goals) owns more in the competition's history.
City beat Copenhaghen 3-1
City started strongly and were rewarded with De Bruyne scoring in the 10th minute. A reverse pass from Foden did the trick. Despite pressure from City, FC Copenhagen found some joy when an error from Ederson saw Magnus Mattsson score. However, De Bruyne's assist led to Silva restoring City's lead ahead of half-time. Late in the second half, Foden found the net.
Real eke out a 1-0 win against Leipzig
After a goalless first half, it was Diaz who put Real in front. He received the ball on the touchline and glided past several Leipzig defenders to find the top corner. Real held on thereafter to eke out a narrow first-leg win. Real have now won each of their last seven Champions League matches.
Contrasting records records for Leipzig and Real
As per Opta, Leipzig are without a clean sheet in each of their last 14 Champions League home matches. Meanwhile, Los Blancos claimed their fifth victory in their last six away knockout matches (L1) against German opponents.
Massive feats for Lunin and Rodrygo
Andrey Lunin is the second Real goalkeeper to make nine-plus saves in a single Champions League game without conceding since at least 2003-04, after Thibaut Courtois in the final against Liverpool in 2022 (also 9). Rodrygo clocked his 200th match with Real Madrid in all competitions. He owns 50 goals and 36 assists for the Spanish club.
