Holders Manchester City resumed their Champions League defence with a comfortable 3-1 win against FC Copenhagen in their first leg encounter at the Parken Stadium.
Kevin De Bruyne who has had a long injury lay-off, broke the deadlock in the 11th minute as he latched onto a Phil Foden pass to slot it cooly past the hapless dive of Copenhagen keeper, Kamil Grabara.
The Belgian had missed a golden chance minutes earlier with a poorly executed header, but made no mistake as they were trying to ensure an upper hand going into the second-leg at the Etihad.
Copenhagen would restore parity in the in the 34th minute though, as a Mohammed Elyounoussi shot would be deflected of Nathan Ake onto the path of Magnus Mattson who would curl in a beautiful shot past City keeper Ederson, who had no chance of keeping it out.
It would take City ten minutes to regain their lead, with Bernado Silva lobbing Grabara on the stroke of half-time, to see the defending champions go into the break with a 2-1 advantage.
City were expected to win the match with a flawless performance, but the home team did give them a run for their money, with Copenhagen only having themselves to blame as they were unable to convert chances when they mattered most.
City would put the game to bed in the dying minutes of the match, as a De Bruyne led counter, so him cut the ball back to Phil Foden, and the English International who has been on a hot-streak, killed off the game as his goal brought the tie to a 3-1 dominant win by the holders.
With the away rule scrapped off by FIFA, the Cityzens now stand a bigger chance to qualify for the next round, as they gear to face Copenhagen in the second-leg of the encounter on March 6th.
John Njuguna
