There was ill-fortune, too, as Jack Grealish went off injured after 30 minutes, having played in the manner of a man with a point to prove to his manager.
Real could scent the nerves and anxiety on the pitch and off. Jude Bellingham’s injury-time winner almost had a sense of inevitability as City’s scrambled minds led to mistakes. The punishment came from close range, England’s talisman turning home with erratic keeper Ederson out of his ground after being lobbed by Vinicius Junior.
Vinicius Junior, understandably given the pre-match banner, relished the moment and revelled in Real’s victory celebrations. The perfect answer.
It was Real Madrid being, well, Real Madrid. Nothing is ever settled against them until the final whistle sounds.
The holders only led in this game for 90 seconds. Crucially for them, and perhaps fatally for Manchester City, it was for the final 90 seconds.
It leaves City, given their current form and propensity for collapse, almost needing a miracle in the second leg at The Bernabeu. And miracles only tend to happen to the team in white in that iconic, unforgiving arena.
The tale was also told in the tired legs that consumed City in the second half, when Real ran the show, missing a host of chances as they assumed control, before Kylian Mbappe’s half-hit finish equalised Erling Haaland’s early strike.
It was totally against the run of play when the striker restored City’s lead, which they held until Real’s trademark late surge.
City may yet defy the odds in Madrid, but come what may, this season continues to carry all the air of an era ending, a great team reaching the end of the road.
