Su Dong's Golden Ball Tour
Man City's narrow 1–0 victory over Inter Milan gave them back-to-back wins and put them in a strong position in the race to advance from Group A. Villarreal, who had beaten Inter Milan in the opening round, had lost away to Dortmund in the second round.
Klopp's team played with the ferocity of the Yellow Wall at home, defending their ground with a 2–0 victory.
After two rounds of group-stage matches, the results left everyone stunned. Inter Milan had somehow sunk to the bottom with two straight losses.
The Italian media were in uproar.
Everyone had already sensed Inter Milan's decline during last season's Champions League campaign. Maicon had been completely overrun by Gareth Bale. Though tactics and circumstances had played a part, it had nevertheless become a symbol.
In particular, with Juventus rising and AC Milan recovering over the past few years, Inter Milan had gradually passed their peak and begun their descent. Their owner, Moratti, also lacked the funds to keep investing heavily.
That was how things had reached this point. This season, they had even replaced their head coach after only a few matches.
Ranieri, nicknamed the Tinkerer, was unquestionably capable, but he would probably struggle to direct Inter Milan through this season's script.
As for Man City, there was no need to say more. They had once again earned widespread praise, especially Su Dong, who had scored the only goal.
Even Ranieri had said at the post-match press conference, "Su Dong stole the victory we were certain to win."
His implication seemed to be that if Su Dong had not scored, Inter Milan might really have found the net.
But whatever the case, it was all behind them now.
After playing Inter Milan, Man City returned to the Premier League