Man City secure round of 16 spot in the Champions League with a 2-0 win over Galatasaray at the Etihad, thanks to goals from Erling Haaland and Rayan Cherki.

UCL: Man City cruise past Galatasaray, secure round of 16 spot with a win at the Etihad

Manchester City secured a spot in the Champions League round of 16 with a 2-0 win over Galatasaray at the Etihad on Wednesday.

Erling Haaland opened the scoring in the 11th minute after Jeremy Doku set him up with a perfect through ball. Rayan Cherki doubled the lead in the 29th minute, again assisted by Doku, who drew defenders before laying the ball off.

Doku left the pitch shortly after with a calf injury, the only setback in an otherwise comfortable first half for City.

“We are happy because we wanted to finish in the top eight,” said City midfielder Bernardo Silva. “With the schedule, avoiding two extra games is really important.”

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City controlled most of the match, creating chances while limiting Galatasaray to rare opportunities. The Turkish side pressed more after halftime but could not threaten City’s clean sheet.

Galatasaray manager Okan Buruk said: “It was a beautiful game, two teams playing beautiful football. In an away game against Manchester City, we were happy with our second-half performance.”

Haaland’s goal was his seventh in eight Champions League games this season and his 56th in 56 appearances, equalling Ruud van Nistelrooy on the all-time scorers list.

City now focus on the Premier League with a trip to Tottenham on Sunday. Galatasaray prepare for the Champions League play-off round and their league fixtures in Turkey.