'Hat trick explosion in the first half of Valverde.' Real, Manchester City's 3-0 defeat → UCL quarterfinals are just around the corner... EPL is on the verge of annihilation

*This content was translated by AI.

The special midfielder's surprise hat-trick dominated the game. Real Madrid is on the verge of advancing to the quarterfinals against Europe thanks to Federico Valverde (28), who scored three goals in the first half alone.

Real Madrid defeated Manchester City (England) 3-0 in the first round of the UEFA Champions League (UCL) round of 16 at Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid, Spain, at 5 a.m. on the 12th (Korea time).

With Kylian Mbappe and Hodrigu out due to injuries, Real Madrid destroyed Manchester City with Valverde's thrilling scoring sense. Thanks to Valverde's performance, who completed a hat trick in the 42nd minute of the first half, Real Madrid secured a three-goal victory in the first round and took a stride toward the quarterfinals.

Home side Real Madrid activated a 4-4-2 formation. Vinicius Junior and Brahim Díaz were two-top players, while Arda Güller, Aurelien Chouameni, Thiago Pitarch and Valverde built the midfield. Ferland Mendy, Dean Hasun, Antonio Rudiger and Trent Alexander Arnold were four-backed and Thibaut Courtois kept the goal.

The away side Manchester City faced each other 4-1-3-2. Erling Holan and Antoine Semeno were on the two-top, while Jeremy Doku, Bernardu Silva and Savinho were behind. Rodri played defensive midfielders, while Niko O'Reilly, Mark Gehi, Huven Dias and Abdukodir Husanov were in charge of the four backs. The goalkeeper's gloves were worn by Gianluigi Donnarumma.

The first goal was scored in the 20th minute of the first half. Valverde caught Courtois' long kick with a perfect first touch, beat Donnarumma and pushed it correctly.

Just seven minutes later, Valverde scored an extra goal. In the 27th minute, Vinicius dribbled the defense from the side and stabbed an exquisite through pass. Valverde, who was rushing inside, slightly brushed the defender's foot and connected the whole ball with a left-footed turning shot to shake the net.

Valverde, who gained momentum, completed a hat trick before the first half was over. In the 42nd minute, Díaz hit the ball given by Pytharcic and Valverde, who dug into the box, scored.

In the 12th minute of the second half, Real Madrid even had a chance to score its fourth goal. Vinicius tripped over Donnarumma's hand and won a penalty. However, Vinicius' shot as a kicker himself was blocked by Donnarumma's good defense.

In the 24th minute, Manchester City threw a game-winning move to put in Rayan Ait Nouri and Rayan Sherki without Silva and Semeno. Real Madrid started to solidify by putting Eduardo Camavinga in place of Güller.

Manchester City's Holan was helpless throughout the game due to Rudiger's intensive checks such as hand-to-hand defense. After a slump, he was replaced by Omar Marmusi in the 37th minute. Real Madrid secured a scoreless victory by blocking Manchester City's offensive to the end.

As a result, all four teams in the English Premier League (EPL) failed to win in the round of 16. On the same day, Arsenal (England) had a 1-1 draw in the away match of Bayer Leverkusen (Germany). Chelsea (England) lost to Paris Saint-Germain (France) 2-5. Liverpool (England) lost 0-1 without scoring in the away game of Galatasaray (Turkiye) on the 11th. Tottenham Hotspur (England) fell to Atletico Madrid (Spain) 2-5.

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*This content was translated by AI.