French newspaper L’Equipe pulled no punches by handing several Manchester City stars brutal ratings following their 3-2 Champions League play-off defeat against Real Madrid.
Pep Guardiola‘s side had appeared on course to claim a valuable first leg lead, with Erling Haaland scoring a brace either side of a Kylian Mbappe strike.
Man City were stunned in the closing stages as Brahim Diaz levelled against his former club, before Jude Bellingham grabbed a stoppage time winner for the reigning European champions.
L’Equipe, who have been known for their harsh player ratings, highlighted several underperforming players in the Man City line-up.
Bernardo Silva‘s display was given a particularly harsh critique, with the midfielder handed a 3/10 for his performance, the lowest mark of the starters.
‘The Portuguese player had a poor game, winning only 17% of his duels (1/6), recovering only 3 balls and causing 3 fouls, including the well-placed free kick that led to Kylian Mbappe’s equaliser,’ L’Equipe wrote.
Bernardo Silva was given a 3/10 rating by L’Equipe, who highlighted him losing several duels
Ederson was scrutinised for his role in two of Real Madrid’s goals in the playoff first leg
Pep Guardiola was given a 4/10 for his management as Man City lost 3-2 late on at the Etihad
‘He could also have been given a yellow card for a charge on Jude Bellingham (89th), which surprisingly was not whistled.’
City boss Guardiola was given a 4/10 for his management of the match, with goalkeeper Ederson, defender Ruben Dias and winger Savinho given the same rating for their performances on the field.
Ederson’s role in two of the Real Madrid goals was scrutinised, with a particular focus on his errors for the second having given away possession in the build-up to Diaz’s equaliser.
‘Even though he made several saves against Kylian Mbappe and Jude Bellingham, the goalkeeper was too static on the Frenchman’s goal,’ L’Equipe wrote.
‘Above all he was doubly at fault on that of Brahim Diaz, since he first missed his clearance before pushing the ball back to the Moroccan.’
Despite winning the first leg, Real Madrid’s Dani Ceballos and Ferland Mendy were given 4/10 ratings for their performances.
Ceballos was penalised a foul on Phil Foden leading to Haaland’s penalty, while Mendy was deemed to have ‘suffered enormously’ on the left side of Real Madrid’s defence during the tie.
Erling Haaland scored twice on the night but missed out on L’Equipe’s highest rating
Vinicius Junior was picked out as the best performer on the pitch on Tuesday night
Despite scoring twice for Man City, Haaland was beaten to L’Equipe’s top rating on the night by Vinicius Jr, who scored 8/10 to the Norwegian’s 7/10.
The outlet stated that boos from Man City supporters had ‘no effect’ on Vinicius, who said the Brazilian has ‘found the energy that made him strong last season’.
L’Equipe also gave four 7/10 ratings to Real Madrid players, as well as their manager Carlo Ancelotti.
The newspaper praised the display of young Real Madrid defender Raul Asencio, stating the 21-year-old demonstrated a ‘formidable reading of the game’ and showed he was more than a substitute.