Manchester City secured a 2-0 win against Villarreal in the Champions League at Estadio de la Ceramica. Pep Guardiola's team dominated early, missing two chances within three minutes. Savinho set up Jeremy
Doku, who missed, and Erling Haaland's header went wide. However, City took the lead after 17 minutes when Rico Lewis assisted Haaland, who scored from close range.
Villarreal's best chance in the first half came from Pape Gueye, whose powerful shot narrowly missed. Bernardo Silva then extended City's lead five minutes before halftime with a precise header from Savinho's assist. Savinho almost added a third goal but was denied by Luiz Junior's diving save.
In the final stages, Villarreal missed several opportunities to score. Nicolas Pepe headed wide and later volleyed over the bar. Meanwhile, Haaland tested Junior twice as he sought another goal. Tani Oluwaseyi hit the post in stoppage time, adding to Villarreal's frustration.
The victory moved Manchester City to fifth in the standings, tied on seven points with Borussia Dortmund. Villarreal remains winless in the Champions League and is 29th in the table.
Victory at Villarreal 0-2 pic.twitter.com/9EHWaTES8k
- Manchester City (@ManCity) October 21, 2025
Erling Haaland continues his impressive form, scoring in nine consecutive matches across all competitions. This streak is only surpassed by his ten-game run between August and October 2022 during his club career. On Tuesday, both teams had similar chances with Villarreal generating 1.42 expected goals (xG) and City achieving 1.5 xG.
City's clinical finishing made the difference between the two sides despite comparable opportunities created by both teams.
