It wasn’t exactly vintage Manchester City under Pep Guardiola, but City opened their Champions League campaign with a win.
Manchester City’s latest European adventure got underway on Wednesday at the Etihad Stadium as Portuguese champions FC Porto visited. City went down a goal early due to a brilliant run and strike from Luis Díaz (as well as some lackluster defending), but managed two set-piece goals to find a 3-1 result.
City once again looked lethargic in possession for large stretches of the match, but much like the weekend’s effort against Arsenal, they did enough to get all three points. With Kevin De Bruyne injured, Sergio Agüero was forced to resume penalty duties after Raheem Sterling was taken out by the notoriously reckless former Real Madrid defender Pepe. Although it was not a convincing effort, the Argentine just put it past compatriot Agustín Marchesín to get City level and grab his 40th career Champions League goal. İlkay Gündoğan then hit a brilliant free kick gave the home side a lead they would not surrender, and it was the best the German has looked in some time.
Ferran Torres came on and made an instant impact, going on a run of his own before slotting home the third. Overall, it will go down as a good day at the office for Manchester City, opening their European account with three points, but this team still doesn’t seem to be in top form. Nevertheless, the results are all that matter, and after a poor start to the Premier League, City have grabbed back-to-back home wins against decent opposition.
More from Game Review
- Manchester City keep unbeaten streak alive with 1-1 draw vs Brighton
- Manchester City march towards the title with 3-0 win over West Ham
- Manchester City “tear cockneys apart again” in masterclass 4-1 Premier League win
- Manchester City produce a professional performance to reach the FA Cup Final
- Manchester City vs. Bayern Munich: the Etihad brought all the Champions League drama
Elsewhere in the group, Olympiacos grabbed a 1-0 win over Marseille, but all three of Porto, Olympiacos, and Marseille are evenly matched enough to where I believe the battle for second place is far from decided. City will face the French outfit next before consecutive games against the Greeks.