Viktor Gyokeres scored a hattrick as Manchester City were thrashed 4-1 by Sporting Lisbon in their UEFA Champions League (UCL) encounter in Portugal on Tuesday night.
The in-form 26-year-old striker scored two of his three goals in the second half as Sporting came from a goal down to defeat the former UCL champions.
Led by Ruben Amorim, the new Manchester United coach set to take over at Old Trafford next week, Sporting went behind to Phil Foden’s fourth-minute strike from distance to put Pep Guardiola’s side ahead. The hosts managed an equaliser when Gyokeres beat the offside trap to run onto a threaded pass before slotting the ball beyond Ederson Moraes.
Man City had chances to regain the lead in the first half, but the oft-clinical side could not make them count, and Sporting made them pay in the second period. They took the lead seconds after the restart in a similar fashion to the equalizer, Maximiliano Araujo the beneficiary this time, and he slotted through Ederson’s legs for 2-1.
Gyokeres converted a penalty conceded by Josko Gvardiol for his second of the night and 3-1 for Sporting. Pep Guardiola’s side were handed a penalty of theirs but Erling Haaland hit the bar, and the home side further punished the miss.
Gyokeres netted another penalty awarded following a foul to complete the hattrick and an unlikely rout of the English Premier League (EPL) champions. Defeat is Man City’s third consecutive loss in all competitions.
Elsewhere, Liverpool moved closer to qualification for the knockout phase following a 4-0 win over Victor Boniface’s Bayer Leverkusen. Luiz Diaz also netted a hat trick in a match in which all four goals were scored in the second half. The victory maintained the Reds’ 100% status after four games, and Arne Slot’s side is top of the table with 12 points.
However, Real Madrid, the reigning UCL champions, suffered another defeat at the Santiago Bernabeu, losing 3-1 to AC Milan, their second defeat in the group stage.
RESULTS
Real Madrid 1-3 AC Milan
Liverpool 4-0 Bayer Leverkusen
Sporting Lisbon 4-1 Manchester City
PSV Eindhoven 4-0 Girona
Borussia Dortmund 1-0 Sturm Graz
Slovan Bratislava 1-4 Dinamo Zagreb
LOSC Lille 1-1 Juventus
Celtic 2-1 RB Salzburg
Bologna 0-1 AS Monaco
[TheCable]