UCL Round-Up: Haaland Helps Manchester City Edge Real Madrid; Arsenal Stay Perfect

UCL Round-Up: Haaland Helps Manchester City Edge Real Madrid; Arsenal Stay Perfect

Erling Haaland continues to treat goal-scoring like a routine chore.

The Norwegian smashed home his 34th goal of the season as Manchester City battled to a 2-1 win over Real Madrid at the Bernabeu, piling more pressure on Xabi Alonso after back-to-back home defeats.

It was Haaland's 21st strike in 21 games for City this season and his 51st in 50 Champions League starts.

“The game was a bit chaotic… super happy," he told TNT Sports, stressing how crucial it was to bounce back after their loss to Bayer Leverkusen.

“Two more games left… we need to finish strong."

Real, missing Kylian Mbappe, struck first through Rodrygo, who drilled across Donnarumma. But City teen Nico O'Reilly pounced on a loose ball minutes later for his first Champions League goal. VAR then punished Antonio Rudiger for wrestling Haaland in the box, and the striker buried the penalty.

Real kept swinging. Courtois saved them repeatedly, Jude Bellingham chipped over with only Donnarumma to beat, and Vinicius Jr. skied a late chance. Substitute Endrick even clipped the bar.

“It's a difficult moment… we wanted to show people we're together with the coach," Rodrygo said.

Arsenal on brink of last 16

Arsenal are in cruise mode. A 3-0 win at Club Brugge made it six wins in six, giving them more points (18) than last season's threshold for a top-eight finish that guarantees last-16 qualification.

Noni Madueke scored both a long-range stunner and a simple tap-in before Gabriel Martinelli curled in a third.

“We're fighting on all fronts… we can win this competition," Madueke said.

Grimaldo Denies Newcastle Late; Top-Eight Race Tightens

Bayer Leverkusen's Alejandro Grimaldo struck an 88th-minute equaliser to seal a 2-2 draw against Newcastle — a goal that stopped the Premier League side from jumping into the top eight.

Newcastle, now two points off the automatic qualification zone, had overturned a Bruno Guimaraes own goal through Anthony Gordon's penalty and a Lewis Miley strike. But Grimaldo, Leverkusen's standout this season, stole a point late.

“It all comes back to mentality… we need to be consistent," Gordon said.

Elsewhere in the UCL

PSG were held 0-0 at Athletic Bilbao but stay third overall; Juventus beat Pafos 2-0; Dortmund and Bodo/Glimt drew 2-2; Benfica beat Napoli 2-0; Ajax roared back with a 4-2 win over Qarabag; Villarreal slipped to the bottom after losing 3-2 to FC Copenhagen.

(with AFP inputs)

Source: News18
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