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Manchester City suffered a heavy 3-0 loss to Real Madrid in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League round-of-16 tie at the Santiago Bernabéu. Federico Valverde delivered a standout performance with a first-half hat-trick, scoring in the 20th, 27th, and 42nd minutes to put the hosts in complete control.
Despite the one-sided scoreline, a second-half penalty incident became a major talking point after the match, as City manager Pep Guardiola strongly defended his goalkeeper, Gianluigi Donnarumma, over the decision to award the spot-kick.
Guardiola defends Donnarumma after controversial penalty call in City’s 3-0 Loss to Real Madrid
The penalty was given when Vinicius Júnior went down under contact from Donnarumma during a Real Madrid counterattack early in the second half. Vinícius stepped up to take the kick himself but saw his effort saved by Donnarumma, preventing the score from becoming 4-0.
Guardiola, however, insisted the call was incorrect, stating that Donnarumma had clearly touched the ball first before any foul occurred. Speaking after the game, the Sky Blues manager said:
“Gigio Donnarumma touched the ball… that was not a penalty.”
Meanwhile, the result leaves Guardiola’s side facing a daunting task in the return leg at the Etihad Stadium, needing a remarkable comeback to advance. Los Blancos' clinical finishing and Valverde's brilliance ensured they took a commanding lead into the second leg.
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