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Mönchengladbach 0-2 Manchester City: A leg up

By J.C. Gonzalez

Manchester City's Portuguese midfielder Bernardo Silva (L) and Moenchengladbach's Swiss defender Nico Elvedi vie for the ball during the UEFA Champions League, last 16, 1st-leg football match Borussia Moenchengladbach v Manchester City at the Puskas Arena in Budapest on February 24, 2021. (Photo by FERENC ISZA / AFP) (Photo by FERENC ISZA/AFP via Getty Images)
Manchester City's Portuguese midfielder Bernardo Silva (L) and Moenchengladbach's Swiss defender Nico Elvedi vie for the ball during the UEFA Champions League, last 16, 1st-leg football match Borussia Moenchengladbach v Manchester City at the Puskas Arena in Budapest on February 24, 2021. (Photo by FERENC ISZA / AFP) (Photo by FERENC ISZA/AFP via Getty Images) /
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Manchester City grabbed a thoroughly deserved 2-0 first-leg victory in the Champions League Round of 16 against Borussia Mönchengladbach at the Puskás Aréna in Budapest, Hungary. The German outfit were unable to play a true home leg due to governmental restrictions, but City still maintain a powerful two-goal win with two away goals heading back to the Etihad Stadium for the second leg.

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Bernardo Silva opened the scoring on a pinpoint cross from João Cancelo before turning provider himself for Gabriel Jesus to put the game beyond all doubt. City have now won a simply incredible 19 straight matches and have left their German opposition with a mountain to climb in England for the second leg.

After years of Champions League disappointment against lesser opposition, City are halfway to avoiding what would be a major upset in the Round of 16. Most of their struggles during the Pep Guardiola era have come at the quarterfinal stage, but many have named City as arguably the definitive favorite to win Europe’s biggest competition.

Given the success in the Premier League and the incredible run in all competitions, these talks are natural, but I don’t believe winning the Champions League should be an expectation.

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Simply regaining the Premier League crown, progressing past the dreaded quarterfinals, and perhaps picking up one of the two domestic cups would be a fantastic season for a team that was seriously struggling just a few months ago. Nevertheless, this is yet another incredible result for a team that at the moment, looks to be the continent’s very best.