Wasteful Man City Beaten by Clinical Leverkusen in European Opener

Bayer Leverkusen punished Manchester City’s wastefulness with a ruthless 2-0 win at the Etihad, as Pep Guardiola’s side made a stuttering start to their Champions League title defence. City dominated territory, possession and chances, but Xabi Alonso’s team showed far greater efficiency in both boxes to inflict a rare home European defeat on the Premier League champions.

Guardiola’s problems began before kick-off, with a stretched squad leaving the bench notably light. On the pitch, City’s familiar pattern emerged: long spells camped in Leverkusen’s half, intricate approach play and repeated opportunities falling to Erling Haaland. But the Norwegian was repeatedly denied by an inspired Matej Kovar, while Phil Foden and Julian Álvarez also passed up presentable openings. As the game wore on, City’s attacks became more predictable and their structure increasingly vulnerable to the counter.

Leverkusen, compact and disciplined, waited for their moments. Their opener arrived from a dead-ball situation City failed to manage, as the visitors capitalised on slack defending to strike from close range. Chasing the game, Guardiola threw on teenager Nico O’Reilly and reshuffled his back line, further exposing City’s lack of experienced depth. In stoppage time, Leverkusen sealed victory with a slick break, finishing calmly past Ederson to underline the contrast in cutting edge.

The result leaves City with early work to do in the group and renews scrutiny of their summer business, with injuries exposing how thin key areas have become. Guardiola admitted afterwards that while Haaland will rightly draw attention for missed chances, the wider issue is a squad stretched to its limits – and a team suddenly looking far more human when the margins turn against them.