Following the latest captivating Champions League clash between Real Madrid and Manchester City, it is advantage Los Blancos heading into Wednesday's playoff second leg at the Bernabeu.

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Making light of Real Madrid's furious Ballon d'Or snub when Los Blancos learned that Rodri would pip Vinicius Junior to the top prize, Man City fans unfurled a banner of their Spanish metronome kissing the accolade with the tagline "Stop crying your heart out" - an ode to Citizens-crazed Oasis - last week.

However, the home faithful may have instead been reduced to tears at the end of the first leg, where none other than Vinicius lifted the ball over an onrushing Ederson and witnessed Jude Bellingham settle a five-goal spectacular from close range, the latest engrossing European turnaround from the men in white.

Now just 90 minutes away from a customary place in the last 16 - where either Atletico Madrid or Bayer Leverkusen will be waiting - Real Madrid may find safe haven in the Champions League, having now failed to come up trumps in any of their last three matches in the Spanish top division.

The weekend's 1-1 draw with Osasuna was clouded in yet more officiating controversy, as either side of Kylian Mbappe's strike and Ante Budimir's equalising penalty, Manchester hero Bellingham said something that the referee clearly did not like and was ejected from the field of play.

Now at risk of being overtaken at the top of the table by Barcelona if the Catalan giants defeat Rayo Vallecano on Monday night, Real Madrid at least have history to fall back on in Europe; from the 39 previous occasions where they have won the first leg of a knockout game away from home, they have only failed to advance from two of them.

While Real Madrid have progressed from 37 of their 39 European knockout ties when prevailing in the first leg, City are yet to take a leaf out of their hosts' comeback book, having been eliminated on each of their four previous occasions when losing the opening battle.

The odds may be stacked against Pep Guardiola's Man City, but the stuttering English champions at least enjoyed a near-perfect warm-up for a daunting trip to the Bernabeu, hitting Newcastle United for four without reply in Saturday's Premier League pummelling.

While Mohamed Salah might hold the crown of Egyptian king, Omar Marmoush made his case to be labelled the Liverpool star's heir apparent with a terrific hat-trick inside just 33 minutes, before James McAtee emerged from the bench to finish the job for the scintillating Sky Blues.

The five-in-a-row dream may be long gone, but Guardiola's men at least remain in control of their top-four destiny in England's top flight and are slowly but surely starting to look like Man City again, even if last week proved that their winter frailties have not been entirely eradicated.

Nevertheless, the visitors have now made the net bulge in 15 successive matches across all competitions, including each of their last seven on the road, but they are on a dismal three-game losing streak away from home in Europe, already Guardiola's worst-ever such sequence.

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