Manchester City ensured they will finish top of Group A with a crucial 2-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain in UEFA Champions League action on Wednesday night.
UEFA Champions League
Result: Manchester City 2-1 Paris Saint-Germain
Date: 24 November 2021
Venue: Etihad
Nuno Mendes, Marquinhos, Pascal Kimpembe and Ander Herrera came into the PSG side, while Oleksandr Zinchenko, Ruben Dias and Riyad Mahrez were recalled to the City side as Phil Foden, Cole Palmer and Aymeric Laporte dropped out.
In the fifth minute, Kimpembe fouled Mahrez on the right-hand side. The free-kick was delivered to the back post and Rodri headed it goalwards as Kimpembe heroically headed the ball off the line away to safety despite his momentum going towards his own goal.
City were bossing the encounter as Raheem Sterling cut inside from the left and played a delicate ball in between the lines for Zinchenko to run onto and the Ukrainian's shot from an acute angle forced Keylor Navas into an excellent reflex save.
Pep Guardiola's side were all over PSG like a bad rash and missed yet another gilt-edged opportunity on the half-hour mark. The Citizens committed plenty of numbers forward before Bernardo Silva squared from the right to the edge of the box for Ilkay Gundogan, whose curling shot hit the left-hand upright and bounced away to safety.
Mauricio Pochettino's charges almost snatched the lead on the stroke of half-time. Idrissa Gueye stole the ball from Rodri and Lionel Messi surged forward before laying it off to Kylian Mbappe on his left, whose effort grazed the crossbar.
Guardiola would have been tearing his hair out five minutes after the interval when PSG took the lead despite his side having been in complete control of the contest. Messi played a give-and-go with Herrera on the edge of the box and his cross somewhat fortunately found its way to Mbappe at the far post via a City defender's touch and Mbappe drilled the ball through Ederson's legs and into the back of the net.
City deservedly equalised just after the hour mark. Rodri found Kyle Walker on the right side of the box with a ball over the top and the wingback side-footed the ball first-time back into the box with it finding its way to Sterling at the back post, who had to stretch and toe-poke the ball just inside the post.
Ten minutes later, the Citizens had turned the tie around as they grabbed the lead. Gundogan dribbled down the right and squared the ball back to Mahrez, whose cross to the back post to Bernardo Silva saw the Portuguese deftly touch it to Gabriel Jesus, who clinically finished into the far corner.
From there on out, City looked likely to grab a third but it mattered not as they got the three points they were looking for regardless.
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