Bunny Shaw and a dramatic last-gasp decision from the referee ensured Man City took a point off Real Madrid with a 1-1 draw in the Women's Champions League. Standout Linda Caicedo had given Real the lead in the first half but City improved after the interval and Shaw levelled with an equally expert finish across the keeper to put the league phase clash in the balance. Shaw headed over and Yui Hasegawa volleyed wide for the hosts before Ayaka Yamashita had to pull off an excellent stop to deny Irune Dorado as both sides pushed for a winner.
Silvia Cristobal thought she'd clinched it in the 89th minute for Real Madrid, with a wonderful finish into the top corner - but referee Silvia Gasperotti had whistled to stop play after inadvertently blocking Beth Mead from reaching the ball. Real Madrid's players and coaching staff were furious and appealed for the goal to stand but ultimately this closely fought contest ended in a draw - the same result City achieved in their opening game away to Bayern Munich last week. They will now turn their attention to this weekend's Women's Super League clash with Arsenal, which is live on Sky Sports, while Real prepare to face Barcelona. 10: OFF THE BAR!
Alex Greenwood clips an excellent free-kick from out wide into the Real Madrid six-yard box where Mary Fowler meets it - but sends her header against the bar! 21: BIG SAVE! Ayaka Yamashita rushes out to close down Felicia Schroder as she spins and shoots close to goal. 29: GOAL! Linda Caicedo runs around the outside of Laura Blindkilde Brown down the right and then is allowed too much space in the box by Greenwood before clipping her shot inside the far post. 40: CHANCE!
Shaw shows good hold-up play in the box before laying off for Yui Hasegawa to shoot - and Maelle Lakrar bravely heads the powerfully hit effort away. 51: GOAL! Bunny Shaw hauls City level with a sharp finish across the keeper after Hasegawa does really well to turn the ball over in midfield. 62: OVER! It looks like a great chance for Shaw to add a second from Lauren Hemp's cross - but her header sends the ball over the bar. 75: OFF TARGET!
A Greenwood corner comes out to Hasegawa just inside the area... but for the second time in the game she sends a volley wastefully wide! 77: SAVE! Another excellent stop from Yamashita, who gets a hand to Irune Dorado's shot. 89: BALL IN THE BACK OF THE NET...BUT NO GOAL! Silvia Cristobal picked out the top corner and thought she had scored, but the whistle had already gone because referee Silvia Gasperotti had inadvertently blocked Mead, preventing her from getting to the ball.
"We started the second half much better than how we started the first half and that's something we're going to look on as a team. We're disappointed we didn't win the game but definitely [showed] fight at the end and that's good as well." Sky Sports News' Ben Ransom at City Football Academy: "A hard-fought draw for City in their first home game back in this competition. There were a lot of distractions for everyone connected to the club in the build-up but it didn't show in their performance.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
