The goalkeeper spoiled a good display by spilling the ball for Madrid's equaliser before the defender lost his head and gave away the winner

Manchester City were at their very best and very worst as they twice took the lead but ultimately fell to a 3-2 defeat against Real Madrid to leave their Champions League hopes hanging by a thread. It was all going so well when Erling Haaland dispatched a penalty in the 80th minute to restore City's advantage after a flukey Kylian Mbappe strike had cancelled out the Norwegian's opener.

But just when it looked as though Pep Guardiola's side were heading to the Spanish capital with the ideal advantage, they were haunted by a familiar inability to see out a game and conceded twice in the final five minutes. Former City academy graduate Brahim Diaz levelled after sloppy goalkeeping from Ederson before Jude Bellingham took advantage of a huge lapse of concentration in the City defence to snatch a stoppage-time winner.

Before kick-off, City fans mocked Vinicius Jr for losing out to Rodri in the race for the 2024 Ballon d'Or and throwing his toys out of the pram. The Brazilian looked fired up and provoked a foul from Ederson which would have resulted in a penalty had he not been offside, while he then had a shot deflected off the bar in a rampant start from the visitors.

But it was City who took the lead after a tremendous move which saw Josko Gvardiol play a long floor pass to Haaland, who expertly held the ball up and found Jack Grealish. Gvardiol then appeared in the box to chest Grealish's chipped cross towards Haaland, and the Norwegian fired past Thibaut Courtois. The goal survived an interminable VAR check for offside, and City then came close to doubling their lead when Manuel Akanji sent a glancing header off the bar.

At the other end, Mbappe wasted a golden opportunity to equalise when he spooned over the bar, but the Frenchman did eventually equalise in the most bizarre circumstances, taking a wild swing at a Dani Ceballos pass and striking the ball with his shin, completely flummoxing Ederson and everyone else in the ground.

City got their noses back in front when Haaland buried a penalty after Ceballos tripped Phil Foden, but just when it looked as though they were heading to the Spanish capital with the lead, they were haunted by a familiar inability to see out a game.

GOAL rates Man City's players from the Etihad Stadium…

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Ederson (6/10):

Spoiled an otherwise excellent display with a poor kick that led to the second equaliser, as he also pushed Vinicius' shot straight to Brahim. Before then he had responded to everything Madrid threw at him aside from Mbappe's freakish goal and was super-quick out of his goal to sweep up the danger while being courageous in possession.

Manuel Akanji (6/10):

Alert to Madrid's danger, deflecting Vinicius' shot onto the bar before then making a big tackle from the resulting corner. Headed against the woodwork at the other end, but had to come off at half-time with an injury.

Ruben Dias (6/10):

A strong, combative performance at the back, leading his fellow defenders through a daunting test against this world-class attack. But it could not last and he lost the ball leading to the second equaliser.

Nathan Ake (6/10):

Did a good job containing Mbappe before being taken off for Kovacic.

Josko Gvardiol (9/10):

Outstanding at both ends of the pitch. Charged into tackles and repeatedly won them while he was lethal in attack, providing a threat with his passes from deep and then acting like an auxiliary striker, laying the ball off to Haaland for the goal.

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Kevin De Bruyne (5/10):

Didn't really get involved in the game and couldn't spark much danger.

John Stones (8/10):

For much of the game played like it was 2023 again, marauding all over the pitch and showing plenty of courage in possession. But right at the end he lost the foot race with Bellingham.

Bernardo Silva (6/10):

Worked hard to try and keep Bellingham at bay and it paid off for much of the game.

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Savinho (6/10):

Put in a shift defensively and sacrificed his usual creativity.

Erling Haaland (8/10):

Delivered a statement performance against a top European opponent, demonstrating excellent hold-up play in addition to his two spot-on finishes and striking the bar. A shame it amounted to nothing in the end.

Jack Grealish (6/10):

His surprise but fully deserved inclusion in the line-up bore fruit when he helped set up the opening goal, but he soon succumbed to familiar injury problems and had to be withdrawn on the half-hour mark.

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Phil Foden (6/10):

Wasn't as useful as Grealish in possession, but won the penalty after deceiving Ceballos.

Rico Lewis (4/10):

Struggled to live with Madrid's pace on the counter, with Vinicius and Bellingham getting past him but not scoring. Paid a heavy price for lack of concentration when he gifted Vinicius the ball in the build-up to the winner.

Mateo Kovacic (4/10):

Cumbersome in possession and lost a couple of 50/50s. Didn't sense the danger for Madrid's second equaliser.

Omar Marmoush (N/A):

Came on in the 84th minute and his difficult start to life with City continued as he watched in horror as his side collapsed.

Ilkay Gundogan (N/A):

Brought on in the 84th minute and in that short space of time City fell apart.

Pep Guardiola (5/10):

It was all going so well. He reverted to similar tactics to the treble-wining season by deploying Stones in midfield and starting Grealish, but must take some of the blame for the last-gasp capitulation, particularly his late double-change when City needed consistency to see the game out.