Real Madrid secured a thrilling 3-2 victory over Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday night in the UEFA Champions League play-off round first leg. Erling Haaland scored first, with Kylian Mbappé shinning in an equaliser in the second period. Haaland added a second from the penalty spot, but a late strike from Brahim Díaz against his former club and then an injury-time winner from Jude Bellingham sealed the win.

Three answers

1. How would Lucas Vázquez be replaced?

While Fede Valverde was always the obvious choice to replace Lucas Vázquez at right-back, there was some doubt over whether Carlo Ancelotti might make a surprise change. In training leading up to the game he experimented with Ferland Mendy on the right of defence and Fran García on the left. In the end, it was Valverde who would play there, boosted by the return of Eduardo Camavinga in midfield to add depth in a position which may otherwise have been looking thin. Valverde looked comfortable and handled the threat of Jack Grealish, and later Savinho and Phil Foden, well. It’s worth noting the support from Rodrygo, who dropped back more than usual, to help cover the right flank.

2. Would the pressure of a big game get to Real Madrid again this season?

Picking out the biggest games of the season on paper and looking at the results does not make for pleasant reading for Madridistas this season. While much of this team is the same as the side that seemed to win games on mentality alone, this season has not been quite the same, with poor defeats against Liverpool and Milan in Europe and a shocking Super Cup final loss to Barcelona following a Clásico thrashing in La Liga. Against the biggest teams in Europe, this was the first win since a 5-2 victory against a poor Borussia Dortmund side. On both occasions, Real Madrid had to come from behind to win. This victory could prove a real turning point in Real Madrid’s European season, having struggled in several of their high-stakes matches in continental competition.

3. Did last season’s shoot-out end the Etihad curse?

This is the first and only time to date that Real Madrid have won at the Etihad Stadium. This was the club’s eighth visit to the arena, and the best ever result was the last one, which ended 1-1 after 120 minutes and was won 4-3 in a penalty shoot-out. The six previous visits had produced two draws and four defeats against the Citizens. On Tuesday night, Real Madrid got their first ever win inside 90 minutes in the blue half of Manchester. Even closing in on the final minutes of this game it looked unlikely that Los Blancos would break that run, but the spirit continued until the very last minutes which was what it took to get the win. It was also Ancelotti’s fourth win against Pep Guardiola, with three draws and seven defeats.

Three questions

1. How does this affect the set-up for the second leg?

Taking the lead is undoubtedly good news for Real Madrid, but as Carlo Ancelotti himself reflect post-match, “the result is a trap result. You’ve won, it can make you lower your arms, because you don’t have to come back, but you have to prepare well”. A first leg victory means that it’s advantage to Real Madrid ahead of the return fixture next Wednesday, but also means that Pep Guardiola’s side could see almost their whole season depend on 90 minutes of action. City showed that even if they may be a shadow of their former selves, they can still cause Real Madrid problems and they did so throughout. Their goals conceded largely came from the kind of individual errors from their players that was previously almost unseen, alongside clinical finishing from Real Madrid’s men that helped to get the job done.

2. Should we be concerned about Vinícius’ form?

Much has been said about Vinícius Júnior and his form in recent weeks. Manchester City’s unveiling of a large banner saying “stop crying your heart out” with a picture of Rodri kissing the Ballon d’Or served to add fuel to the fire. Vini reacted as if he was a man with a point to prove. He created more chances than anyone else on the field with five, and completed more dribbles than anyone else with three. In addition, he laid on the game-winning assist at the death, even if it may have been a wayward attempt on goal. After three games without a goal involvement, his longest drought since last February, it arrived at the perfect time to silence his haters. Asked about the banner post-game, Ancelotti said, “watching his game, it has been a motivation for him”. It’s hard to disagree.

3. Were Real Madrid hard done by from Clement Turpin?

Real Madrid had two refereeing decisions go against them, and while they may not make a difference on the night, they could do in the second leg. Los Blancos’ record of never having lost with French referee Clement Turpin continues, but there were two controversial calls. Some takes seem to suggest that Manchester City’s opening goal from Erling Haaland was marginally offside, with question marks over the semi-automatic offside system’s accuracy. It was a tight call, though the latter was just as controversial as Dani Ceballos clashed with Phil Foden on the edge of the box. There can’t be many complaints about the physical contact, Ceballos smashing his knee into Foden, and he seems to have been marginally in the box. It was needless and clumsy, but Turpin’s decision looks to have been the right one.