There’s just enough time for Mahrez to send a cross into the mixer from the right, causing momentary panic among the Madrid defenders, and the whistle goes. City could have been out of sight, but Real have limited the damage. Time for Carlo Ancelotti to get to work, while Pep Guardiola prepares to give Mahrez the hairdryer treatment.
A brilliant interception by Zinchenko, with Valverde this close to sending Rodrygo scampering clear down the right. City go straight up the other end, and Kroos upends Jesus near the left-hand corner of the box. Another free kick in a dangerous position.
Real have created next to nothing this evening, but now look! Modric crunches into a tackle with Mahrez, and sends Mendy into space down the inside-left channel. Mendy swings in a bouncing cross. Benzema gets ahead of Zinchenko on the edge of the area, and swivels a shot into the bottom right. And as quickly as that, Real are back in it!
This is turning into such an odd game. Now De Bruyne sends Mahrez free into acres down the right. He’s got Foden free in the middle. A pass rolled across, and it’s 3-0. But he goes for the top right instead, and lashes into the side netting. On the touchline, Pep is absolutely furious. An eye-popping, vein-bulging, lung-lacerating rant. Penny to be a fly on the City dressing room wall at half time.
Slapstick shenanigans in the City box. Ederson passes out to Dias, who allows himself to be stripped immediately by Benzema. The ball breaks to Vinicius, on the edge of the six-yard box. Dias gets back and pokes the ball across Ederson. It dribbles towards the open goal, and deflects off the base of the right-hand post. Then the flag goes up for offside, which explains why Benzema didn’t bother to run the rebound home.
It Should Be Three pt.II (of what will almost certainly be an ongoing series). De Bruyne, absolutely bossing this match, slips Foden clear down the left. Foden’s first touch isn’t ideal, taking him a little too far to the left. So instead of slotting home, he drags a shot across the face of goal and wide right.