By SCM Staff at the Etihad
ERLING HAALAND finally remembered where the back of the net was as Manchester City’s superstars dodged a Champions League banana skin to march straight into the last 16.
The Norwegian Goal-King had been stuck in a rare five-game “ice age,” but he thawed out the Etihad on 10 minutes with a finish as cool as a January morning.
It wasn’t the usual power-blasted Haaland special, though—this was a delicate, cheeky dink over the sprawling Ugurcan Cakir that screamed “class is permanent.”
Doku the Destroyer
If Haaland provided the finish, Jeremy Doku provided the fireworks.
The Belgian wing-wizard was playing like a man possessed, leaving Turkish defenders with twisted blood before the first half-time whistle had even blown.
It was Doku who turned architect for the opener, slicing the Galatasaray backline open with a pass that had “Goal” written all over it. And he wasn’t done there. Before the half-hour mark, he was at it again, skinning his man to tee up summer signing Rayan Cherki.
Cherki, the French starlet who is fast becoming a fan favourite, didn’t need a second invitation.
He picked his spot from 12 yards and buried it, making it 2-0 and effectively ending the contest before the kebabs had even been served in the away end.
Pep’s Pain and Gain
It wasn’t all smiles for Pep Guardiola, who celebrated his 400th win as City boss.
The Spaniard was left clutching his head when his star man Doku was forced off with a calf injury just before the break.
”Jeremy was excellent, but we have incredible chances and maybe we needed more goals,” Pep said, though he looked relieved to avoid the “headache” of a play-off round.
Galatasaray, led by City legend Ilkay Gundogan and boasting the firepower of Victor Osimhen, huffed and puffed in the second half. But they found Gianluigi Donnarumma in “Thou Shalt Not Pass” mode. The Italian giant produced a world-class sprawling save to deny Osimhen and keep the clean sheet intact.
With Real Madrid slipping up elsewhere, City’s stars have navigated the “League Phase” storm to finish 8th.
The message to the rest of Europe? The champions are back, the Viking is scoring, and the road to the final still runs through Manchester.
