Monaco 2-2 Man City: Dier’s Late Penalty Denies Haaland Hat-Trick Heroics
By Kamal Yalwa | October 1, 2025 | Champions League Manchester City were left frustrated in Monaco after Eric Dier’s controversial 90th-minute penalty earned the hosts a 2-2 draw in their Champions League league phase clash, denying City what looked like a deserved victory. City had dominated proceedings, hitting the woodwork twice and registering 18 shots, but failed to kill the game off after Erling Haaland struck twice in the first half from just seven touches. The Norwegian forward opened the scoring after 14 minutes with a clever lob over goalkeeper Philipp Köhn, only for Jordan Teze to rifle in a spectacular equaliser moments later. Haaland restored City’s lead before the break with a powerful header from Nico O’Reilly’s cross, taking his tally to 11 goals in this season’s competition. Phil Foden and Tijjani Reijnders both struck the bar, while Haaland spurned a glorious chance for his hat-trick. Their profligacy proved costly when VAR intervened late on: referee Jesús Gil Manzano was sent to review a high boot by substitute Nico Gonzalez on Dier at a set-piece. Despite City protests, the spot-kick was awarded and Dier coolly converted past Gianluigi Donnarumma. The result extends City’s winless away run in the Champions League to 12 months, dating back to their victory over Slovan Bratislava last October. Manager Pep Guardiola cut a frustrated figure post-match: “We didn’t defend the free-kick perfectly. We touched the ball first, it touched the opponent too, but it was given. Many things were against us tonight.” Haaland, despite his brace, was equally critical: “I don’t think we played good enough. We don’t deserve to win. We needed more energy. In the second half we allowed them to come back.” City now sit mid-table in the league phase standings, while Monaco celebrated a hard-earned point despite being second-best for much of the contest. Player of the Match: Erling Haaland (Man City)Final Score: Monaco 2-2 Manchester City