De Bruyne cancels out Rodrygo's opener as epic clash goes to wire

With 72 minutes on the clock, an increasingly fervent Manchester City support announced who they were and promised to fight until the end.

- David Hytner

Manchester City                        1
De Bruyne 76

Real Madrid                                 1
Rodrygo 12

4-4 on agg; score at 90 min

It was a night of fine margins and high tension and, as they trailed to Rodrygo's early goal, the defending European champions needed to show all of their personality. Above all, they needed a hero.

Real Madrid had looked the part in the first half, so polished on the ball, and they had come to believe that they were destined to win at the Etihad Stadium.

It was all City in the second half, Madrid pushed further and further back but could City find the equaliser to stay alive? They gave their answer shortly after the cry from their fans and, inevitably, the author was Kevin De Bruyne.

Pep Guardiola had introduced Jérémy Doku on the left wing and the substitute's impact was key. Doku's quick feet were too much for Federico Valverde and, when he crossed, Antonio Rüdiger made a mess of the clearance. When the ball broke, there was De Bruyne to lash high into the net.

City had been getting closer. De Bruyne bent a corner against the outside of the near post while Jack Grealish worked Andriy Lunin. Now they had what they wanted and how close they went to settling matters before the end of normal time.