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Real Madrid advance past Manchester City in one-sided play-off tie.

Mbappe hits a hat-trick to crush Manchester City, handing Real Madrid a 6-3 aggregate win and a spot in the round of 16.

Los Blancos had an advantage going into the second-leg at the Santiago Bernabeu, thanks to their 3-2 victory at the Etihad. They did not rest on their laurels at home, however, peppering City with more goals.

Mbappe set the tone early, scoring inside five minutes. He scored twice more within the hour, confirming Real Madrid’s result, before Nico Gonzalez scored a late consolation goal for Pep Guardiola’s side to give the travelling supporters something to cheer.

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Key match details

Raul Asencio’s long ball caught Ruben Dias off guard, allowing Mbappe to seize the opportunity and calmly loft the ball over the stranded Ederson to give Los Blancos the best possible start. 

Manchester City did not kick into gear, and Carlo Ancelotti’s side continued to dominate. Their sustained dominance led to a flurry of corner kicks, one of which saw Jude Bellingham leap to meet the ball, only to glance it wide. But the best was yet to come.

In the 33rd minute, Vinícius’s pass found its way to Rodrygo, who cleverly flicked it on to Mbappe. The former PSG striker then left Josko Gvardiol in his wake with a deft touch before clinically dispatching the ball inside Ederson’s near post.

City struggled to create anything meaningful; meanwhile, Real Madrid maintained their grip on the match, and Mbappe completed his hat-trick around the hour mark. The Frenchman cut inside Phil Foden before unleashing a precise left-footed finish from the edge of the box.

Although City showed slight improvement thereafter, Real Madrid remained the more likely team to score, with Vinícius testing Ederson with a curling effort.

Trailing on aggregate, City’s spirits were crushed, and they looked dejected in the final stages. However, they managed to grab a consolation goal in stoppage time, as Omar Marmoush’s free-kick rebounded off the bar for Nico González to tap in.

The meeting between the last two UCL winners at this stage was unexpected, but Real Madrid emerged victorious once again. Having lifted the trophy last season, they’ll now face either Atlético Madrid or Bayer Leverkusen in the last 16 as they bid to repeat their triumph.