Manchester City have etched their name in Champions League history following their commanding victory over Sparta Prague on Wednesday night.
The Citizens were in fine form at the Etihad Stadium in midweek and secured a convincing 5-0 victory over the Czech First League champions, which was the biggest win of match day three in Europe’s elite club competition.
Aston Villa’s victory against Bologna on Tuesday, coupled with Liverpool’s win against RB Leipzig a day later, ensured that both English teams maintained their perfect records in this season’s competition.
However, the substantial margin of City’s victory over Sparta was sufficient to propel Pep Guardiola’s team into third place in the League Phase, thanks to a better goal difference than the six other teams that also have seven points so far.
In addition to achieving two wins out of three in the Champions League this term, Man City’s result in midweek has earned them a unique record in the competition.
The result was the Citizens’ 26th consecutive Champions League match without defeat, marking the longest streak of its kind in the tournament’s history.
Although they only reached the quarter-final last season, their elimination followed two draws with Real Madrid, which resulted in a penalty shootout defeat; therefore, they technically did not lose the match.
The previous record was held by the Sky Blues’ cross-town rivals Manchester United, who went 25 matches without losing in Europe between 2007 and 2009.
City, European champions in 2022-23, have not lost a match in this competition since May 2022, when Los Blancos defeated them 3-1 in the second leg of the semi-final at the Bernabeu.
Phil Foden gave his side the perfect start against the Czech outfit in midweek by finding the opening goal just three minutes into the match.
John Stones and Matheus Nunes also got their names on the score sheet in the rout, while Erling Haaland added a brace to secure the victory.
Since the 2019-20 season, the Norwegian striker has now scored 44 Champions League goals, surpassing Robert Lewandowski’s total of 43.
This achievement also means he has outscored the likes of Alessandro Del Piero (42) and Neymar (43), while he is now level with Chelsea legend Didier Drogba’s tally.
To extend their new record to 27 games unbeaten, Guardiola’s side will travel to Portugal to take on Sporting Lisbon in a matchday four encounter on November 5. —Sportsmole