“Cometh the hour cometh the man”, Belgian playmaker Kevin De Bruyne saw Manchester City home against Sevilla in dramatic style in Wednesday’s UEFA Champions League action as Paris Saint-Germain held ten-time titleholders Real Madrid to a goalless draw.
De Bruyne’s injury time contribution earned City a 2-1 home win against Spain’s UEFA Europa League champions to improve their chances of escaping from Group D and into the last 16.
An open affair at the Etihad Stadium was heading for a draw after Adil Rami’s own goal cancelled out Yevhen Konoplyanka’s 30th-minute opener for Sevilla, only for De Bruyne to gather a pass from Yaya Toure and slam home with his left foot seconds into stoppage time. Manuel Pellegrini’s men moved up to second, one point behind Juventus, the Serie A giants held to a 0-0 stalemate by Borussia Monchengladbach in Turin.
In Group C, Diego Simeone’s 2014 runners-up Atletico Madrid eased past Astana 4-0 to get their European campaign back on track after a shock defeat to Benfica last time out.
Saul Niguez opened the scoring with a clever backheel before Jackson Martinez scored his first goal at the Vicente Calderon for Atletico to put the hosts well on course for victory. Substitute Oliver Torres added a third after the break before Denis Dedchenko’s late own goal rounded off the scoring. Galatasaray’s 2-1 win over Benfica in the other game in the group means Atleti draw level with Benfica at the top on six points, two points clear of the Turkish champions.
