JAKARTA - Captain Federico Valverde successfully scored a hat-trick that led Real Madrid to destroy Manchester City 3-0 in the first big match of the 16-year-old Champions League at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, Thursday, March 12, 2026 WIB. The crushing defeat made Man City's steps heavier towards the quarter-finals even though their chances were not closed.
Man City seems to have experienced an anticlimactic in a big Champions League match. How not, Pep Guardiola's team showed consistency in the qualifying phase so that they qualified for the 16th round without having to undergo a playoff.
Likewise in the English Premier League, Man City is still overshadowing Arsenal who are leading the standings. Even though they are seven points behind, Guardiola still believes they can still catch up with Arsenal.
The team's performance remains excellent in the domestic competition makes Man City very confident when visiting Madrid's headquarters. Moreover, the Spanish LaLiga giant has not been able to be consistent which resulted in the club firing coach Xabi Alonso and replacing him with Alvaro Arbeloa.
Only Arbeloa's polish has not completely succeeded in bringing Madrid to the winning track. However, they can already overshadow Barcelona even though they are still four points behind in the Spanish League.
In the Champions League, Los Merengues also had to play a playoff because they lost to Benfica, which was handled by Jose Mourinho, Madrid's former coach, in the last match of the qualifying phase.
Interestingly, in the playoff draw, Madrid met Benfica again. Madrid finally managed to get past the Portuguese club's hurdle to meet Man City.
The draw makes Madrid not favored even though they play at home in the first match. Moreover, Arbeloa cannot field the best squad because he lost Kylian Mbappe who has not recovered from a knee injury. In addition, Rodrygo and England national team player Jude Bellingham are still dealing with injuries.
Practically, Arbeloa again relies on the 18-year-old midfielder Thiago Pitarch. Meanwhile, in front is Vinicius Junior who duets with Brahim Diaz. With a squad far from perfect, Madrid is expected to have trouble keeping up with Man City's offensive game which relies on Erling Haaland.
But what happened was actually outside the prediction. The solid game of the 15-time Champions League champion who is in the underdog status really makes it difficult for the Cityzens.
Even their attacks can always be broken by Madrid's defense line, which relies on Trent-Alexander Arnold and Dean Huijsen. They work shoulder to shoulder with senior defender Antonio Rudiger who has returned to play after recovering from injury.
But Valverde became the star of the field by scoring a hat-trick. Interestingly, this is Valverde's first hat-trick since he was appointed as captain of Madrid after the departure of Luka Modric, Tony Kroos and Nacho. Not only that, Madrid should have won 4-0 with a penalty from Vinicius Jr.
However, this three-goal victory is an important capital for Madrid when playing the second match at home to Man City on Wednesday, March 18, 2026 WIB. Moreover, they only need a draw to ensure a ticket to the quarter-finals. On the other hand, Man City must work hard when playing at the Etihad. They must chase the goal deficit to get rid of their rival.
In the big match, Madrid made a surprise appearance when facing Man City who were full team. Even the duo of midfielders Phil Foden and Rayan Cherki had to sit on the bench. Meanwhile, Antoine Semenyo and Marc Guehi made their debut in the Champions League. Semenyo who duet with Haaland had threatened Thibaut Courtois' goal in the early minutes of the match.
When under pressure, Madrid can even score a goal. Because of that, Courtois kicked the ball far ahead which was immediately directed to Valverde.
The ball was then taken by Valverde alone because the Man City players had already left the defense area. Goalkeeper Gianlugi Donnarumma had to come out of the goal to intercept Valverde. But he managed to outwit Donnarumma and then fired a shot into the empty goal.
The goal in the 20th minute was immediately greeted by the Madrid fans who were 1-0 ahead. The goal also raised the adrenaline of the home players to play more offensively. They were able to play attacking football that made the defense. Man City had to work hard.
Proven, Madrid's effective game again bore fruit when Valverde scored his second goal just seven minutes later. Receiving the ball from Vinicius Jr, the Uruguayan national team player calmly fired a shot that defeated Donnarumma.
Valverde, who scored in the last minute that was the determinant of the 2-1 victory over Celta Vigo in the domestic competition, again showed his sharpness by making a hat-trick. This time, he received a pass from Diaz and defeated Guehi before launching a volley that broke into the Man City goal in the 42nd minute.
The score changed 3-0 for Madrid who showed a dynamic full performance and dominated the match well so that Man City was helpless.
In the second half, Madrid did not slow down the game. Diaz almost added a goal shortly after the match resumed. Only Donnarumma managed to stop him.
However, Man City still struggled to develop the game. Even Madrid should have scored again after getting a golden opportunity following Vinicius Jr's fall by Donnarumma in the penalty box in the 58th minute.
The referee also pointed to the white dot. Only Vinicius Jr's execution failed to bear fruit because it could be read by Donnarumma. The success of the Italian national team goalkeeper in thwarting the penalty should motivate his partner to rise.
But their efforts did not bear fruit. Haaland, who did not move because he was turned off in turn by Rudiger and Huijsen, was eventually pulled out.
However, Guardiola's efforts to narrow the gap were not successful. The score of 3-0 for Madrid lasted until the end of the match.
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