Manchester City vs Bayer Leverkusen: UEFA Champions League 2025-26 Match Preview

Manchester City suffered a shock loss against Bayer Leverkusen in the last match at Etihad Stadium. The visitors defeated the English football giants by a score line of 2-0, a result no one had expected before the game. This largely came due to some costly mistakes made by Manchester City in the field. The German club capitalized on those errors and tore apart Guardiola’s team's defence to secure a thrilling UEFA Champions League victory.

The home side struggled to create clear chances throughout the game. Interestingly, they had possession for most of the match. However, they couldn’t find gaps through the defences of Bayer Leverkusen. Due to this, their attacking posture failed, as the German club staged a stunning counter-attack to stun the City midfielders in two crucial moments of the game. Due to that, they successfully scored 2 goals, making all the city fans quite disappointed.

This is a big setback for Pep Guardiola, as he was aiming to secure a smooth victory in this home match. Now, he needs to give his players more confidence for the next match, as they can’t afford to lose another game in the ongoing UEFA Champions League.

In this article, we will take a quick overview of the match between Manchester City vs Bayer Leverkusen at Etihad Stadium. Let’s first take a look at the lineup of both teams for this match below.

Manchester City Lineup for Bayer Leverkusen Clash

Manchester City:  J Trafford, A Husanov, J Stones, N Aké, R Ait Nouri, R Lewis, N Gonzalez Iglesias, T Reijnders, O Bobb, O Marmoush, Savinho

Substitutes: M Bettinelli, G Donnarumma, R Alves Dias, E Haaland, M Cherki, J Doku, B Silva, M Nunes, P Foden, N O'Reilly, J Gvardiol

Bayer Leverkusen Lineup for Manchester City Clash

Bayer Leverkusen: M Flekken, E Poku, J Quansah, L Bade, J Belocian, A Grimaldo, I Maza, A García, M Tillman, P Schick, C Kofane

Substitutes: N Lomb, C Echeverri, E Seghir, N Tella, J Mensah, M Culbreath, B Hawighorst, F Pohl, J Schlich, N Mensah

Manchester City vs Bayer Leverkusen UEFA Champions League: Match Preview

Bayer Leverkusen came up with a strong performance against tournament favourites, Manchester City, at the iconic Etihad Stadium. They played with a discipline that helped them to keep their defences strong throughout the match. In contrast, Manchester City struggled in the midfield positions, which ultimately cost them the match.

The English side came into the match with an unbeaten record at this stage, however, their streak was torn apart by a more organized German side. Grimaldo helped the visitors to get an early lead in the match, as his goal in the 23rd minute cleared the intentions of Bayer Leverkusen.

The visitors then kept the pressure in the second half, and scored another goal in the 54th minute, courtesy of P. Schick brilliance. Assisted by I. Maza, he swiftly broke the defences of City midfielders to launch a powerful strike on the goalpost. This double advantage over the home team sealed the game for Bayer Leverkusen, as they won the match at the end with a final score line of 2-0.

Venue Details of Manchester City vs Bayer Leverkusen UEFA Clash

Venue: Etihad Stadium in Manchester

Competition: UEFA Champions League 2025/26

Final Words

The game between Manchester City and Bayer Leverkusen produced an unexpected result, as the German club stunned the English side by a score line of 2-0. Grimaldo and Schick were the star performers for Bayer Leverkusen, as they scored stunning goals in the 23rd and 54th minutes of the match. It was certainly a shock defeat for Pep Guardiola’s team, which entered the contest with an unbeaten record in the ongoing UEFA Champions League.