Key stats
- Man City are undefeated in their last four games in the Champions League, their last longer unbeaten streak was from 6th September 2022 to 23rd October 2024, a run of 26 games.
- Erling Haaland has scored in his last five games in the Champions League (seven goals in total).
- Borussia Dortmund have conceded five goals to opposition substitutes in the Champions League this season, more than any other team.
Highlights
Analysis
Phil Foden was awarded the Man of the Match and given the highest Flashscore rating of the game (9.0). Erling Haaland was the next highest-ranked player on 7.9.
Match report
Not too many teams go to the Etihad and try to dictate play from the get-go, but that’s the approach Dortmund took, and one which almost proved their undoing.
For all their attacking endeavour, City caught the German side going the other way and forced Gregor Kobel into action when Phil Foden stung his palms with a 25-yard drive and Savinho blazed the rebound over.
Foden tried his luck from the same distance 10 minutes later, and this time it was a much different outcome, as he was found in a dangerous pocket of space by Tijjani Reijnders before confidently sweeping an effort into the bottom corner.
It wouldn’t be a City game at present without Erling Haaland getting on the scoresheet and his customary goal duly arrived just before the half-hour mark.
Jérémy Doku was the architect, recycling Savinho’s initial cross and finding the unmarked Haaland who almost took the back of the net off from 10 yards.
Dortmund’s attacking offerings were few and far between in the first half, but they did at least test Gianluigi Donnarumma before the break when Karim Adeyemi stepped in off the right and made the Italian work for the first time of the evening.
On Bonfire night in the UK, it was Foden bringing the fireworks to the Etihad, adding his second goal of the evening in almost carbon copy fashion to the first, as he curled home from 20 yards into the same bottom left corner he found in the first half.
City were toying with Dortmund at times in the second half and could very easily have added a fourth moments later when Foden stood up a cross to the back post which Savinho powered over on the volley.
Dortmund did manage to make things a little more interesting in the closing stages when a quick free-kick culminated with Julian Ryerson teeing up Waldemar Anton to sweep home at the near post.
A last-ditch John Stones block denied Adeyemi from moving Dortmund to within a goal of City as the hosts started to look a little jittery. Pep Guardiola turned to his bench to help see the game out, and one of his substitutes, Rayan Cherki, added a fourth in stoppage time to round off a victory which stretched their unbeaten run in UCL home group/league phase fixtures to 23 games.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Phil Foden (Manchester City)
Click here to see all the stats of the match.
Post-match comments
Manchester City winger Jeremy Doku speaking to TNT Sports: "It was a great night against a good opponent. I think we started well and scored some good goals. The second half was a bit difficult but as a team we are very happy with this victory.
"I enjoyed it. I feel like I can still improve a lot more, in my final passes, in front of goal, but today I enjoyed it and I'm just going to rest now because there is a big game ahead."
Man City head coach Pep Guardiola to TNT Sports: "Considering we played two days ago and Dortmund in the Champions League is a top side...
"For the first ten or 15 minutes, we didn't know where we were... but after that, it was better.
"We had ten bad minutes and for ten or 15 minutes after we conceded, it wasn't good because they pushed, they put five, six, seven players up front... but after going to five at the back, we could arrive better and we finished the game with a good goal.
"Huge respect for these players and we're in a good position. If we can make another one or two victories, maybe we can get close to finishing in the first eight."