Manchester City slumped to one of the most humiliating defeats in Champions League history when they lost 3-1 at small Norwegian club Bodø/Glimt in a stunning upset north of the Arctic Circle on Tuesday.
Rodri’s second-half sending off capped a miserable evening for the big-spending city in Bodø, a fishing town of about 55,000 more than 1,000 kilometers north of Oslo – the farthest north club football’s top flight has ever been.
Manchester City’s Erling Haaland (right) challenges Glimt’s Jostein Gundersen for the ball as his side slump to an embarrassing defeat in the Champions League.Credit: AP
Kasper Høgh scored goals from close range in the 22nd and 24th minutes to put Bodø/Glimt – tournament debutants this season – on their way to their first win in the competition.
Jens Petter Hauge sent the home fans into a frenzy at the 8,000-capacity Aspmyra Stadium when he curled the ball into the top corner in the 58th minute to make it a barely believable 3-0.
City responded through Rayan Cherki in the 60th minute but hopes of a comeback were dashed by Rodri – the 2024 Ballon d’Or winner – sent off in the 62nd minute for picking up a second yellow card in quick succession.
The win was no fluke for Bodø, who constantly broke through City’s flimsy, injury-hit defense on the counter-attack and had two goals disallowed due to narrow offside decisions, while also hitting the crossbar and forcing several fine saves from Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Pep Guardiola’s City have spent more than $500m on new signings over the past 12 months but are facing a tough test as they also lost 2-0 to fierce rivals Manchester United in the Premier League on Saturday.
The upset came with some of the most unlikely results in recent years in the Champions League, including Moldovan club Sheriff beating Real Madrid 2-1 in 2021, Rubin Kazan winning 2-1 at Guardiola’s Barcelona in 2009 and Swiss underdogs Basel beating Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United by the same scoreline in 2011.
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