FC Copenhagen 1 Man City 3: De Bruyne puts the holders in control for the second leg
PEP GUARDIOLA has been studying the body language of his players as they went through the gears in recent weeks.
And all he will see from his leading man Kevin De Bruyne is someone desperate to make up for lost time.
The brilliant Belgian had to sit out four and a half months this season due to hamstring surgery.
But since returning to the first team just over a month ago, he has looked like a man determined to make a difference. And boy does he do just that.
KDB was again the protagonist here in Denmark: he scored the opening goal and created a second goal.
His assist for Bernardo Silva's nonchalant finish came from a block tackle and was probably not what he had in mind.
That's how good this man is – and he shows that his return couldn't have happened with a better team for the three-time winners.
And in stoppage time he was at it again, putting his accomplice Phil Foden on the tee to add a third.
That's nine goals in seven games since the former Chelsea man returned.
City could – and should – have won by more, but Copenhagen isn't losing much here and Guardiola's men have one foot in a seventh straight quarter-final.
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In fact, the Danish champions had tasted defeat in only two of this competition's eighteen home games at their Parken Stadium – and as usual the atmosphere was buzzing.
Still, this was their first competitive match since Jacob Neestrup's men qualified for the knockout stages by beating Galatasaray in mid-December.
A 63-day winter break did not seem ideal preparation for a confrontation with a City team that has won its last ten games in that period.
Still, at least their players would be fresh – and given plenty of time to prepare their game plan since the draw took place just before Christmas.
Guardiola restored Jack Grealish to the starting line-up for the first time in a month and the team he picked could not have been much stronger.
He said in the build-up that the entire club now believes in the Champions League – after finally winning the competition in June.
And they looked confident from the start – squandering a good early chance when Kevin De Bruyne nodded Nathan Aké's cross wide.
Ruben Dias also came close, forcing a clever save from Kamil Grabara with a downward header.
City were in complete control – the only surprise was that it took ten minutes for them to take the lead.
Phil Foden has been pushed back out wide after KDB's return to the starting line-up, but has still proven just as effective there.
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And it was the student who slipped a pass to master De Bruyne – and he beat Kamil Grabara with an angled drive.
The Belgian has surprised his teammates with his level since returning from injury a month ago and here he was again, making a difference on the big occasions for them.
Grealish had made a promising start on his first chance to start in a month, but his evening ended prematurely after just 20 minutes.
He went down under pressure from Cupido Goncalves but didn't appear to be kicked – which will be a concern for City – and had to be replaced by Jeremy Doku.
However, it did not change the course of the match and the panicky Denis Vavro was lucky that his header bounced off his own crossbar.
Erling Haaland then attempted a spectacular bicycle kick on Doku's cross, but narrowly missed the target.
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Copenhagen had barely conceded a kick, but Ederson gifted them the equalizer ten minutes before half-time.
He got his pass completely wrong from behind and presented it to Mohamed Elyounoussi whose shot was blocked by Dias.
Yet the rebound fell perfectly for Magnus Mattson, who struck home brilliantly from twenty yards. What a way to mark your debut.
They know a thing or two about fairytales in the house of Hans Christian Andersen – and after beating Manchester United in October, the home fans suddenly dreamed of another fairytale.
However, their team could not quite reach the break on level terms as De Bruyne's tackle on Mattson fell into the path of Bernardo Silva.
The Portuguese maestro had plenty to do, but finished superbly with the outside of his foot to put the visitors back in front.
Guardiola would no doubt have had words at half-time about throwing away the lead, but Ederson would have been a relieved man at the break.
City regained control after the break and De Bruyne was denied a second goal by a flying stop from Grabara.
Doku also brought out the best of the former Liverpool keeper as City looked to put their equalizer to bed on the night.
Grabara denied Haaland twice, but then De Bruyne – inevitably – brought on Foden to wrap things up in stoppage time.