It was, in the end, about Erling Haaland, just as the narrative gods had intended it to be.
He did score the winner against his former club, but for a long time it had appeared that Borussia Dortmund would shock Manchester City Wednesday in the Champions League in the second high-profile reunion in the competition in as many days. It took 80 minutes for Man City to have its first shot on target, but two very different and brilliant goals ensured a 2–1 win and its second victory out of two games in the group stage.
Edin Terzić, perhaps, will regret removing a center forward in Anthony Modeste for a central defender in Nico Schlotterbeck—whose words in the run-up to the match regarding Haaland look quite foolish now—which invited late pressure. But still, it took a ferocious strike form John Stones to pull City level after 80 minutes, before Haaland’s 84th-minute goal. Perhaps João Cancelo should not have been given as much time as he was, but given the opportunity, he shaped in a perfect cross with the outside of his right foot, and Haaland acrobatically finished with a controlled head-high volley. He may have not celebrated out of respect for his old club, but it was a moment worth savoring.
