Manchester City avenge last fornight's 0-4 defeat at Barcelona by beating the Spaniards 3-1 in England; Gundogan's twin strikes and a third by Kevin de Bruyne neutralise Messi’s early goal
Manchester City's Ilkay Gundogan celebrates scoring against Barcelona last night. Pic/AFP
Manchester City's Ilkay Gundogan celebrates scoring against Barcelona last night. Pic/AFP
Manchester: Ilkay Gundogan struck twice as Manchester City produced a thrilling fightback to beat Barcelona 3-1 in a sensational Champions League clash at the Etihad Stadium.
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Kevin De Bruyne was also on target with a sublime free-kick as City responded to Lionel Messi's early strike in remarkable fashion.
City's performance was not only an emphatic response to the 4-0 thrashing in the Nou Camp a fortnight ago that had people questioning manager Pep Guardiola's methods, but reignited their challenge in Group C.
Breathless contest
It was a compelling, breathless contest in which both sides created numerous chances against fallible defences. City had a strong penalty claim turned down early on while Andre Gomes hit the woodwork for Barca. Yet these were just a couple of many memorable moments that contributed to what will be remembered as a classic, and what was perhaps the dawn of a new era for City in Europe.
Barcelona's Lionel Messi (right) celebrates with Luis Suarez after giving his team the early lead against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium last night. Pic/Getty Images
City started with Sergio Aguero in attack and looked all the more dangerous for it. There was a huge sense of anticipation as the Argentinian broke through a gap, relishing the chance to take on a defence lacking Gerard Pique and Jordi Alba, in the opening minutes. On that occasion he was flagged offside but it was an indication of City's determination to attack and that same inclination should have yielded a penalty for Raheem Sterling after 10 minutes.
Sensing opportunity
The England forward looked to have been trodden on by Samuel Umtiti as he burst into the area but instead, to widespread disbelief, found himself booked for diving by Hungarian referee Viktor Kassai. City were sensing another opportunity when Barcelona once again showed their ruthless side to snatch the lead with a clinical counter-attack.
David Silva floated a free-kick into the Barca area and the fit-again Pablo Zabaleta teed up a shooting chance for Aguero. Javier Mascherano blocked and in an instant everything changed as Messi swept the ball forward to release Neymar. The Brazilian raced clear and then played a perfect return pass for Messi behind the retreating defence. Messi made no mistake as he jinked into the area and finished coolly.
Star of the match
Kevin De Bruyne. really came to the fore when City turned things around. He scored a superb free-kick to put them 2-1 up and then played a key role in the build-up to his side’s third.
Moment of the match
Manager Pep Guardiola had said City would need to be “almost perfect” to beat Barca, and De Bruyne’s goal from a set-piece certainly fitted that description, although the Barcelona keeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen should have done better.
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