Real concede second straight defeat at Bernabeu as Man City triumph in Champions League

Real Madrid suffered their second consecutive home defeat at the Santiago Bernabéu within a week, falling 2-1 to Manchester City in their Champions League clash on Wednesday. The loss comes on the heels of their league setback against Celta Vigo earlier in the week.

Nico O'Reilly's opportunistic strike and an Erling Haaland penalty helped City overturn the early deficit in a tense encounter. Rodrygo had given Madrid the lead in the 28th minute with a composed low finish on the counter, as City looked vulnerable whenever the hosts broke forward during the opening half-hour.

But Madrid pressed the self-destruct button, first when goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois spilled a relatively easy header from Josko Gvardiol, with O'Reilly converting the rebound in the 35th minute.

Then, eight minutes later, defender Antonio Ruediger conceded a penalty by wrestling Haaland to the ground as he went to meet a cross in the six-yard box, with the Norwegian striker making sure with the resulting penalty.

The victory pushed Pep Guardiola's side up to fourth in the Champions League standings with 13 points from six games, while Real Madrid dropped to seventh with 12 points after suffering their second straight defeat in all competitions. The Bernabeu crowd voiced their discontent with manager Xabi Alonso, jeering throughout the match as Real continued a poor run of form, having now won just two of their last eight games across all competitions.

"It wasn't enough, we go away very frustrated. We had a great first half, we wanted to start strong, we scored... we need to improve," Rodrygo told Movistar Plus following the defeat. "These matches are decided by details, set pieces... that's why it's frustrating for us because we train for it and it happens but anyway we have to keep going," he added. 

Real Madrid took the field without eight injured players, including top scorer Kylian Mbappe.