Champions League: Erling Haaland helps Manchester City pip RB Leipzig
What's the story
Manchester City secured a thrilling 3-2 victory over RB Leipzig in the UEFA Champions League, with Erling Haaland scoring the decisive goal. The match saw City take the lead twice, only to be pegged back by their German opponents. Castello Lukeba's own goal gave City an early advantage before Ridle Baku equalized for Leipzig. Enzo Fernandez restored City's lead, but Antonio Nusa leveled again before Haaland's late winner sealed the game.
Match details
Haaland scores the winner
Haaland scored the winner in the 77th minute, tapping in from Elliot Anderson's low cross.
This was his 13th goal in nine appearances against Leipzig, making them his favorite opponent.
The victory comes after City's loss to Brighton on Saturday and ends a streak of two defeats in three games.
Despite the win, manager Enzo Maresca still has defensive issues to address ahead of Saturday's trip to Nottingham Forest.
Strategy shift
Maresca makes 4 changes to starting XI
Maresca made four changes to the starting XI from Saturday's defeat, most notably dropping Ruben Dias for Abdukodir Khusanov.
This was likely to counter Leipzig's speedy left forward Nusa, who was a key player in their counterattacks.
Despite some early threats from Leipzig, City took the lead when Nico O'Reilly's cross forced Lukeba into an own goal.
Goal exchange
City regain lead twice
Leipzig equalized through Baku's well-placed shot from a tight angle.
Despite the setback, City quickly regained their lead with Fernandez's powerful header from Iliman Ndiaye's cross.
However, Leipzig equalized again through Nusa's low shot into the bottom right corner.
The match was evenly contested with both teams creating chances and hitting the woodwork in a frantic finale.
Details
Match stats and points table
From 13 shots, Leipzig had six shots on target. City managed 5 shots on target from 12 attempts.
In terms of touches in the opposition box, City (27) edged past Leipzig (18).
City had 64.4% ball possession and completed 609 passes.
In terms of the points table, City are placed 7th after four matches and own 9 points with their goal difference being +5.
Leipzig are 29th with three defeats and a win from 4 games.
Information
Haaland races to 62 Champions League goals
Haaland has amassed 62 goals in the Champions League. For City, he has 39 UCL goals in 42 appearances. In the ongoing season, Haaland owns 5 Champions League goals from three appearances. Overall, Haaland owns 176 goals for City from 211 appearances, including 14 in 13 games this season.