Erling Haaland Returns to Scoring Ways as Manchester City Triumphs over Young Boys
Erling Haaland scored a brace and ended his goal drought in the Champions League as Manchester City continued their perfect record in the tournament with a 3-1 victory over Swiss club Young Boys on Wednesday or early Thursday morning WIB. This win solidifies City’s position at the top of Group G with nine points, while Young Boys remain in third place with just one point, according to UEFA’s official website.
Before this match, City remained unbeaten in their last 16 Champions League matches. Even the challenge posed by Young Boys’ synthetic grass field at Wankdorf Stadium in Bern did not diminish the dominance of the Citizens.
City threatened from the start, with Rodri heading wide from Matheus Nunes’ corner kick. Young Boys goalkeeper Anthony Racioppi then denied Jeremy Doku’s attempt after being set up by Jack Grealish.
As City’s pressure increased, Racioppi failed to catch Grealish’s shot cleanly. However, Loris Benito managed to clear Nunes’ close-range shot before it crossed the goal line.
Despite dominating the game, City were not entirely free from threats. Nathan Ake made a crucial tackle to deny Sandro Lauper’s shot, while Cedric Itten’s header hit the crossbar.
Racioppi once again became his team’s savior just before halftime. He saved Doku’s curling shot and then denied Rodri’s effort.
City finally broke the deadlock in the 48th minute. Ruben Dias’ header was pushed onto the crossbar by Racioppi, and Akanji was in the right position to tap it into the net from close range.
City’s lead only lasted for four minutes when Cheikh Niasse’s accurate pass from his own defense was received by Elia, who sprinted forward. Ederson came out of his goal to narrow the shooting angle, but Elia managed to chip the ball over the Brazilian goalkeeper from the edge of the penalty box.
Haaland then restored City’s lead in the 67th minute through a penalty kick. City was awarded the penalty after Rodri was fouled by Mohamed Ali Camara inside the box, and Haaland had no trouble converting the penalty into a goal.
Julian Alvarez momentarily scored a goal for City in the 74th minute. Unfortunately, the goal was disallowed as Grealish handled the ball during the goal-scoring process.
However, Haaland ensured City extended their impressive record as he received a pass from Rodri and finished the chance with a shot into the corner of the Young Boys’ goal in the 86th minute.
Lineup:
Young Boys: Anthony Racioppi, Lewis Blum, Mohamed Camara, Loris Benito, Ulisses Garcia, Sandro Lauper, Cheikh Niasse, Joel Monteiro, Filip Ugrinic, Mechak Elia, Cedric Itten
Manchester City: Ederson, Rico Lewis, Manuel Akanji, Ruben Dias, Nathan Ake, Rodri, Mateo Kovacic, Jeremy Doku, Matheus Nunes, Jack Grealish, Erling Haaland
In summary, Erling Haaland’s double strike helped Manchester City secure a 3-1 victory over Young Boys in the Champions League. City’s unbeaten run in the tournament continues, reaffirming their status as one of the top contenders.
Erling Haaland mencetak dua gol, mengakhiri puasa golnya di Liga Champions, saat Manchester City memenangkan pertandingan 3-1 melawan Young Boys di markas klub Swiss tersebut. Kemenangan ini membawa City kokoh di puncak klasemen Grup G dengan sembilan poin, sementara Young Boys masih terpuruk di posisi ketiga dengan satu poin.
Sebelum pertandingan ini, City telah mencatatkan 16 pertandingan terakhir tanpa kekalahan di Liga Champions. Lapangan rumput sintetis di Stadion Wankdorf yang dihadirkan oleh Young Boys tidak mengurangi dominasi City dalam pertandingan tersebut.
City mengancam sejak awal pertandingan, dengan Rodri melepaskan sundulan yang melebar dari tendangan sudut Matheus Nunes. Kiper Young Boys, Anthony Racioppi, kemudian menggagalkan upaya Jeremy Doku yang disodorkan umpan oleh Jack Grealish.
Saat tekanan dari City semakin meningkat, tembakan Grealish tidak dapat ditangkap dengan sempurna oleh Racioppi. Namun, sepakan jarak dekat Nunes masih dapat dihalau oleh Loris Benito sebelum bola melewati garis gawang.
Meskipun mendominasi permainan, City tetap menghadapi ancaman dari Young Boys. Nathan Ake harus melakukan tekel krusial untuk menggagalkan tembakan dari Sandro Lauper, sementara sundulan Cedric Itten hanya mengenai jaring atas gawang Ederson.
Racioppi kembali menjadi penyelamat timnya menjelang jeda pertandingan. Ia menahan tembakan melengkung dari Doku dan juga menggagalkan sepakan dari Rodri.
City baru mampu mencetak gol pada menit ke-48 ketika sundulan Ruben Dias ditepis ke mistar gawang oleh Racioppi, dan Akanji menyambarnya masuk ke gawang dari jarak dekat.
Namun, keunggulan City hanya bertahan selama empat menit. Elia dari Young Boys mampu mencetak gol setelah menerima umpan akurat Cheikh Niasse dari area pertahanan mereka sendiri. Meskipun Ederson keluar dari sarangnya untuk memperkecil ruang tembak, Elia berhasil mencungkil bola melewati kiper Brazil tersebut dari tepi kotak penalti.
Haaland kemudian mengembalikan keunggulan City pada menit ke-67 melalui eksekusi penalti. City mendapatkan penalti setelah Rodri dilanggar Mohamed Ali Camara di kotak terlarang, dan Haaland berhasil mengonversi penalti tersebut menjadi gol.
Julian Alvarez sempat mencetak gol untuk City pada menit ke-74, tetapi gol tersebut tidak disahkan karena tangan Grealish menyentuh bola dalam proses terjadinya gol.
Namun, Haaland memastikan City memperpanjang catatan bagus mereka dengan mencetak gol kedua pada menit ke-86 setelah menerima operan dari Rodri dan menyelesaikan peluang dengan sepakan ke sudut gawang Young Boys.
Dalam pertandingan ini, susunan pemain Young Boys terdiri dari Anthony Racioppi, Lewis Blum, Mohamed Camara, Loris Benito, Ulisses Garcia, Sandro Lauper, Cheikh Niasse, Joel Monteiro, Filip Ugrinic, Mechak Elia, dan Cedric Itten. Sementara itu, susunan pemain Manchester City terdiri dari Ederson, Rico Lewis, Manuel Akanji, Ruben Dias, Nathan Ake, Rodri, Mateo Kovacic, Jeremy Doku, Matheus Nunes, Jack Grealish, dan Erling Haaland.
Pertandingan ini menegaskan dominasi City di Liga Champions dengan catatan sempurna mereka dalam empat pertandingan. Selain itu, kemenangan ini juga mengakhiri puasa gol Haaland dan memperpanjang catatan bagus City di kompetisi tersebut.
