- Manchester City 1 (Toure 45+3) Real Madrid (Benzema 21, Ronaldo 24, Pepe 43, Cherysev 73)
Real Madrid eased past an experimental Manchester City side to lift the International Champions Cup after a 4-1 victory at the MCG in Melbourne, Australia.
City manager Manuel Pellegrini sprang a surprise by pairing youngsters Cameron Humphreys and Jason Denayer in the centre of defence and it didn’t take long for Real to exploit their inexperience.
Karim Benzema volleyed home a lovely Gareth Bale cross to start the ball rolling before Cristiano Ronaldo gave a record 99,382 football crowd a moment to remember, controlling a Toni Kroos through ball before flicking past Joe Hart for Real’s second.
Pepe added a third with a thumping header just before the break and although Yaya Toure pulled a goal back courtesy of a controversial penalty right on half time, a fourth from substitute Denis Cheryshev sealed matters late on.
KEY MOMENTS
21’ – GOAL! Real Madrid 1-0 Manchester City: A lovely cross from Gareth Bale and it’s an even better finish from Benzema, who volleys past Hart and into the bottom corner of the net.
25’ – GOAL! Real Madrid 2-0 Manchester City: Kroos chips a lovely ball over the top to find Ronaldo just onside in the City box. He controls before flicking past Hart, who gets a hand to it but can’t prevent it creeping over the line despite his best efforts to claw it back out of the goal.
44’ – GOAL! Real Madrid 3-0 Manchester City: All too easy for Real again as Pepe meets Isco’s corner and powers his header past Hart.
45+4’ – GOAL! Real Madrid 3-1 Manchester City: A lifeline for City as Ramos is harshly adjudged to have handled inside the box when it clearly looked outside. Toure slams home the penalty.
73’ – GOAL! Real Madrid 4-1 Manchester City: Isco’s accurate cross is bundled home by substitute Denis Cheryshev
KEY STATS
The 99,382 attendance is a record for a football match at the MCG.
Real Madrid have still never lost to Manchester City, leading the head-to-head 2-1.
TALKING POINT
Pellegrini’s defensive gamble. It looked a big risk to pair up Jason Denayer (20) with Cameron Humphreys (16) in the centre of defence against one of the most potent attacks on the planet. So it transpired.
MAN OF THE MATCH
Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid): Another superb performance from the Madrid maestro. Put on a show for the Melbourne crowd and scored a nice goal. Will he still be at Real Madrid this season?
PLAYER RATINGS
Manchester City: Hart 5, Sagna 6, Denayer 6, Humphreys 6, Kolarov 6, Toure 7, Fernando 6, Delph 5, Nasri 7, Silva 7, Sterling 6. Subs: Clichy 6, Zuculini 6, Lopes 6, Navas 6, Roberts 6, Iheanacho 6, Dzeko 6.
Real Madrid: Navas 6, Pepe 7, Ramos 6, Ronaldo 8, Kroos 7, Benzema 7, Bale 7, Marcelo 6, Carvajal 6, Modric 6, Isco 7. Subs: Nacho 6, Varane 7, Arbeloa 6, Danilo 7, Llorente 6, Casemiro 6, Cheryshev 7, Lucas 6, Jese 6, Vazquez 6.
