Bernabéu Blow for Real Madrid: Five Things We Learnt From Man City’s Comeback Win! | OneFootball

Manchester City arrived in Madrid needing clarity after their misstep against Bayer Leverkusen. Real Madrid welcomed them amid internal scrutiny, a frustrated coach, and a squad stretched by injuries. The result was not the fluid spectacle many anticipated but a compelling, hard-edged contest that may well prove decisive come the final league-phase standings. Here are the five major lessons from City’s 2–1 win at the Bernabéu.

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1. Madrid Played for Their Manager – But It Still Wasn’t Enough

Xabi Alonso went into the night needing performances as much as he needed points. The game did not deliver the latter, but at the very least it provided evidence that his players remain responsive when the situation demands it.

Madrid started with intensity, carrying width through Vinícius Júnior and Rodrygo, pressing aggressively in the midfield channels and looking nothing like the side that had been overrun by Celta Vigo at the weekend. Rodrygo’s opener – his first in 33 club appearances – was symbolic of that shift. The Brazilian had been Madrid’s brightest threat, and his embrace with Alonso during the celebration was telling.

But Madrid’s recurring flaws resurfaced just as quickly. Injuries to the defensive core left them stretched against a City side that thrives in transitional chaos. A fragile back line was forced to handle City’s repeated left-side rotations, and by the interval, alarm bells were ringing. For all their commitment, Madrid lacked the control or defensive stability needed at this level.

In a results business, effort is rarely enough.

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2. City Found a Way Without Ever Hitting Top Gear

This was not Manchester City at their most incisive or elegant. Phil Foden was quiet, Bernardo Silva struggled to create angles, and City often appeared more pragmatic than polished. Yet Guardiola’s side left Spain with exactly what they needed.

What City did deliver was composure: a capacity to absorb Madrid’s early aggression without losing structural discipline. Their equaliser came from a second-ball situation – Josko Gvardiol rising above Jude Bellingham, Thibaut Courtois spilling, and Nico O’Reilly reacting first. Their winner came from calculated pressure: O’Reilly, again involved, standing up a cross that forced Antonio Rüdiger into a panicked barge on Erling Haaland.

The Norwegian is not usually a supporting character at the Bernabéu, but his cool penalty reflected a team that has re-centred itself after the Leverkusen loss.

City’s night was proof that great European sides do not always need flow; sometimes they simply need nerve.

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3. Nico O’Reilly and Jérémy Doku Are Emerging as Guardiola’s Next Big Axis

For all the discussion around Haaland and Foden, City’s most dangerous avenue was the left flank. O’Reilly and Jérémy Doku carried City’s attacking threat through intelligent rotation, rapid changes of pace, and well-timed switches.

City intentionally funnelled play down their right during the early stages, baiting Madrid into a compact shape. When the moment came to reverse the ball into space, Doku and O’Reilly repeatedly found isolation against an overworked Madrid defence. Their combination produced the cross for O’Reilly’s opener, and it created the positional overload that led to the penalty.

This is becoming one of Guardiola’s most reliable patterns: Doku holding width, O’Reilly underlapping or drifting diagonally into the box, and City using that movement to distort defensive lines. Against Madrid, it caused problems that persisted throughout the night.

If City go far in this competition, it would be no surprise to see this partnership at the heart of it.

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4. Madrid’s Missed Chances and Defensive Chaos Continue to Define Their Season

Madrid’s season has been shaped less by their attacking ideas and more by their defensive deficiencies. They were missing most of their first-choice back four here, but even allowing for that, the fragility was striking.

Rüdiger endured a turbulent evening, lucky to stay on the pitch after a clumsy second-half challenge and responsible for the penalty. Bellingham squandered Madrid’s best late chance with a heavy chip, Vinícius missed two half-openings, and Endrick hit the bar with almost his first meaningful involvement.

These were not half-chances. They were moments that strong Madrid sides convert.

What was perhaps more concerning was how easily City pulled Madrid out of shape. Alonso wants his side to evolve beyond counterattacking football, but without a reliable defensive platform, Madrid often found themselves stuck between identities – neither compact nor expansive, neither controlled nor threatening.

If Madrid are to rescue their season, this is the problem that must be solved first.

: Bernabéu Blow for Real Madrid: Five Things We Learnt From Man City’s Comeback Win!

5. Pressure Eases on Guardiola, Intensifies on Alonso

The result carries very different implications for both managers.

For Guardiola, the win resets the narrative after the Leverkusen defeat. His selection was strong, his game plan disciplined, and his side delivered a mature European performance. With Bodo/Glimt and Galatasaray to come, City are now well positioned to secure a top-eight place and avoid late-phase complications.

For Alonso, the picture is more severe. Two wins in eight matches, pressure mounting, and a squad dealing with injuries on every line. Yet there were signs here that the dressing room has not abandoned him. The Bernabéu acknowledged the effort.

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Final Word

Manchester City were not at their fluent best, but they were decisive when it mattered. Real Madrid fought with energy and intent but lacked the finishing touch and defensive structure required on these nights.

One team left with points, the other with questions – and the gulf between those two outcomes may shape how the rest of their seasons unfold.