Wayne Lumbasi
Manchester City were pegged back by RB Leipzig in the first leg of their Champions League last 16 in what proved to be a cliched game of two halves in Germany.
Riyad Mahrez’s 20th Champions League goal gave City a deserved lead midway through the first half, before Leipzig came storming back in the second and were well worth the 1-1 score-line after centre-back Josko Gvardiol scored with his head.
Leipzig were toothless in the first half but were much improved after the break and outplayed their opponents, who are aiming to reach the Champions League quarter-finals for a sixth straight season.
City have now drawn their last two games after being held 1-1 by Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Saturday while Leipzig’s four-game winning run in the competition came to an end. The return leg is in Manchester on March 14.
Leipzig have claimed big scalps in Europe before and there was clear fear amongst the City squad in the second half that they could be next.
With a Premier League title race still to contend with, City did not opt to throw everything at the match in Germany, clearly trusting their ability to win the game back in Manchester next month.
