Erling Haaland
Erling Haaland achieved the milestone of becoming the fastest player to reach 40 Champions League goals as Manchester City orchestrated a comeback from a 2-0 deficit to triumph 3-2 against RB Leipzig on Tuesday.
Initially, the defending champions were poised for their first European defeat at the Etihad since 2018 as Lois Openda capitalized on defensive lapses to score twice in the first half. Haaland, however, narrowed City's deficit, and subsequent goals from Phil Foden and Julian Alvarez secured the top spot in Group G. Despite already securing a place in the last 16, Pep Guardiola fielded a formidable lineup, emphasizing the importance of clinching the group lead.
City, despite dominating possession and territory, fell victim to lapses from Manuel Akanji and Ruben Dias. Openda capitalized on Akanji's error to finish past Stefan Ortega, and later, Dias' misjudgment allowed Openda to score his 13th goal of the season.
Guardiola responded at halftime, substituting Dias with Nathan Ake. The turning point, however, came with the introduction of Jeremy Doku and Alvarez. Alvarez played a crucial role in City's first goal, feeding Foden, who set up Haaland for his 40th Champions League goal in just 35 appearances.
Foden added to the comeback, converting Josep Gvardiol’s pass from the edge of the box 20 minutes from time. Leipzig thought they had regained the lead, but Fabio Carvalho's goal was ruled offside. City completed the comeback as Doku found Foden, whose low cross was controlled and finished by Alvarez.
Despite already securing their place in the last 16, Leipzig now faces the risk of encountering formidable opponents like Barcelona or Real Madrid in the knockout stages.