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Elsewhere in this group: Celtic have drawn 1-1 with Borussia Moenchengladbach in Germany, which is further good news for Manchester City. They’re on seven points now, two points behind Barca and three ahead of the Bundesliga outfit. If they win in Germany next time out, they’re through to the last 16.
A famous City win: Despite enjoying just 41% of the possession to Barca’s 59%, City put Barcelona to the sword courtesy of an Ilkay Gundogan brace and one from Kevin De Bruyne after Lionel Messi had put the visitors ahead. It was a great game of football, so make sure to seek out the highlights if you can - you won’t be disappointed. A worrying number of Barcelona’s second string players seemed out of their depth, with reserve defenders Samuel Umtiti and Sergi Roberto having paerticularly poor games.
Let’s not take away from City, mind - they kept Barcelona’s peerless attacking trio fairly quiet and were little short of rampant in a second half in which Barcelona were totally bossed.
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Full-time: Man City 3-1 Barcelona
Peep! Peep! Peeeeeep! Referee Viktor Kassai signals a momentous night in Manchester City’s history with three shrill blasts on his whistle. They’ve finally beaten Barcelona at the fifth time of asking. It was an outstanding performance by Pep Guardiola’s side - with the exception of a shaky spell during the first half, they made Barcelona look very ordinary.
90+2 min: City win a corner off Samuel Umtiti after good work down the right from Aguero. Silva takes it short to the Argentinian as they attempt to run down the clock.
90+1 min: Barca win a free-kick, which is curled towards Leo Messi at the far post. Unmarked in acres of space, he makes a mess of his header when he should have scored.
89 min: Barcelona lump the ball forward in an uncharacteristically agricultural fashion and Luis Suarez is jeered as he makes a pig’s ear of an overhead kick. City’s supporters are loving this.
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88 min: Man City substitution: Kevin De Bruyne goes off to a standing ovation and is replaced by Nolito.
86 min: Barcelona keep plugging away, with Neymar, Lucas Digne and Messi combining as they try to pull a goal back. Busquets wins a header that threatens to drop at the feet of Messi in a dangerous position, but Big Willy is quick off his line to snuff out the danger.
85 min: City’s fans are in fine voice as the cheer their team to what looks like certain victory. They’re two goals ahead with only five minutes remaining. What could possibly go wrong, eh? Eh? Oh.
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83 min: Barca win yet another corner, but at the third or fourth time of asking, Man City clear at the near post and set off on the counter-attack. Barcelona eventually clear their lines with Busquets whacking the ball out of play.
82 min: Okay, maybe five or six yards. Messi takes it, but the defensive wall blocks. Corner for Barca, which is quickly followed by another one.
81 min: Free-kick for Barcelona just outside the Manchester City penalty area after Otamendi clatters into the back of Luis Suarez. It’s a little left of centre, approximately two yards outside the box.
79 min: A lovely touch from David Silva, who dinks a short pass into the penalty area that allows Aguero to shoot from a very tight angle. It’s just a little bit too tight.
77 min: Barcelona substitution: Rafinha on for Andre Gomes. Meanwhile in Germany, Celtic have equalised against Borussia Moenchengladbach, a state of affairs that leaves City two points behind Barca and three points clear of the Bundesliga side as things stand in Group C.
76 min: Sergio Busquets has been booked for some indiscretion or other. I’m not sure why - possibly for protesting about something or other after City scored.
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GOAL! Man City 3-1 Barcelona (Gundogan 74)
City extend their lead with another fine goal. Kevin De Bruyne plays the ball through the inside right to Navas, who squares it. It hits the back of - I think - Aguero and bounces kindly for Gundogan, who scores his second of the evening from about eight yards.
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76 min: Barcelona win a corner, which Neymar swings in from the right. Willy Caballero is quick off his line to punch clear.
72 min: Aguero picks up the ball on the left and skips forward. The ball finds its way to Navas on the right touchline and his cross is cleared by Mascherano. Barcelona are all over the place here, looking really out of sorts. City are giving their makeshift defence all sorts of problems and they’re not coping very well.
70 min: Manchester City substitution: Raheem Sterling, who has been excellent, makes way for Jesus Navas.
69 min: Ilkay Gundogan plays the ball forward to David Silva in the Barca penalty area, but the Spaniard is uncharacteristically slow to make a decision and is shepherded out of play.
68 min: Now De Bruyne turns provider, playing the ball inside to Sterling, who brings a smart save out of Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
67 min: This is a real ding-dong battle. City go close again, with Kevin De Bruyne curling an effort narrowly wide of the upright after being set up by Raheem Sterling.
65 min: So close from Barcelona, as Andre Gomes rattles the crossbar from just outside the penalty area with a free shot on goal. Luis Suarez nutmegs John Stones, advances and squares the ball for Gomes who really should have scored.
62 min: Sergio Roberto is having an absolute mare for Barcelona tonight. He sloppily cedes possession to Kolarov, who gallops down the left flank and squares the ball for Kevin De Bruyne. The Belgian stretches every sinew but just fails to prod the ball home. To his right, from a narrow angle, Aguero tries to divert the ball into the net, but his effort is blocked by Samuel Umtiti.
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62 min: Barca substitution: Arda Turan on for Ivan Rakitic.
60 min: Kolarov gets booked for obstructing Ivan Rakitic in front of the dug-outs. Manchester City substitution: Fernando on for Fernandinho, who must have picked up a knock.
58 min: Barcelona are being made to look very ordinary indeed in the opening stages of this second half. They’re struggling to get the ball out of their own half and are reduced to persistent fouling in a bid to put a stop to City’s impressive gallop.
56 min: Busquets fouls De Bruyne on the left flankconceding a free-kick in line with the edge of the Barca penalty area. Silva curls the ball across the face of the six-yard box, where Sergio Aguero leaps like a diminutive Argentinian salmon. His downward header bounces inches wide of the left upright.
53 min: Another chance from City, who have Barcelona on the ropes. Sterling crosses from the inside left and this time it’s Sergio Aguero stretching every sinew. He doesn’t reach the ball and may have been flagged for offside even if he had.
53 min: City go close again! They won a free-kick wide on the left, whicxh Kevin de Bruyne curled in from the right touchline. Umtiti headed towards the bottom left-hand corner and it just needed a touch from Otamendi at the far post, but the defender couldn’t quite reach.
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52 min: That was decent free-kick from De Bruyne, but far from unstoppable. He aimed for the top right-hand corner, but didn’t quite nail his effort in terms of accuracy. It didn’t matter, the ball went in anyway.
GOAL! Man City 2-1 Barcelona (De Bruyne 50)
Kevin De Bruyne scores from the free-kick, with an effort Marc-Andre ter Stegen should have saved. I think he got a hand to it, but was unable to keep the ball out after having his view obscure by the defensive wall.
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50 min: City break on the counter again and Busquets brings down David Silva on the edge of the Barcelona penalty area. Free-kick for the home side in a great position, slightly left of centre a yard or two outside the D.
49 min: Neymar goes down injured after coming out worse from a Nicolas Otamendi challenge.
47 min: Another cock-up from Sergi Roberto, who squares the ball across his own area again as he tries to play it to Sergio Busquets. City pounce again, but a heavy touch from Raheem Sterling results in the winger taking the ball wide and shooting into the side-netting from a tight angle. He should have done a lot better there.
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Second half: Man City 1-1 Barcelona
46 min: We’re off and running in the second half, with no changes on either side. Manchester City finished the first in the ascendancy and get the ball rolling for the second.
An email from Matthew Turner Allen
Or Matthew Allen Turner, I’m not quite sure. “Not sure if you noticed but you seem to be able to create goals at will,” he writes. “Simply mention how well one team is doing and the other team instantly scores. With great power comes great responsibility, Barry. You know what you have to do.”
I have actually noticed this in recent minute-by-minute reports I’ve done and am well aware of my obligations. Don’t you worry about that.
Half-time: City and Barca go in for their half-time libation with the score level at 1-1. City started well, only to be punished with extreme prejudice for their only error of the half. Having spent the middle 15 minutes of the half on the back foot, they equalised courtesy of Gundogan’s second goal for the club and finished the half looking full of confidence. It’s been an entertaining 45 minutes and it’s all nicely poised for a thrilling second half.
45 min: City win a free-kick wide on the left and David Silva floats the ball towards the far post. Barcelona clear and the ref blows for half-time. There hasn’t been a second of added time.
43 min: Messi scuttles into the Manchester City penalty area with the ball glued to his toe, only to have it unglued by a wonderfully timed tackle from Fernandinho. That’s splendid defending.
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43 min: Oof! City have a near miss after Rakitic loses the ball in midfield. Silva gets forward up the inside left and cuts the ball back for Fernaninho, who shoots low, diagonally and this much wide of the right upright.
40 min: Sloppy stuff from Barca, who are punished when Sergi Roberto made the schoolboy error of squaring the ball across his own penalty area and getting caught out badly. Ilkay Gundogan is the grateful recipient of a cross to the far post from Raheem Sterling after the winger had received the ball from Sergio Aguero.
GOAL! Man City 1-1 Barcelona (Gundogan 39)
Ilkay Gundogan rifles home from close range after Barcelona get caught out while trying to play the ball out from the back. It’s all square in Manchester.
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38 min: Barcelona seem to have found their groove in recent minutes and are starting to give City the run-around. Rakitic tees up Suarez, but his low diagonal drive is blocked by Stones. Meanwhile in Germany, Borussia Moenchengladbach have gone a goal up against Celtic. As things stand, Manchester City are third in Group C, two points behind Moenchen.
35 min: Barcelona squander another two chances in quick succession. Stones blocks from Suarez, then a Messi cross to the head of Suarez on the edge of the six-yard box is a wee bit too high.
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33 min: A heavy touch by Neymar in the Manchester City penalty area costs him a shooting opportunity from about 12 yards after good work from Andre Gomes, who’d pulled the ball back from the byline. Manchester City clear.
32 min: City win a free-kick on the edge of the final third for a Suarez foul on Fernandinho. Kevin De Bruyne curls the ball towards the far post, but his delivery is poor and no use to man or beast.
30 min: Manchester City continue to press Barcelona and are playing well despite being a goal down. The longer the game goes on, the easier Barcelona are likely to find it to stay on the ball as their opponents tire.
29 min: Neymar takes one for the team, fouling Raheem Sterling to foil a Manchester City counter-attack in its infancy. He’s duly booked and can have no complaints.
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28 min: Neymar is released down the left wing and has the freedom of the pitch to make a diagonal run into the Man City penalty area. From a narrow angle, he elects to shoot for the top corner and his effort takes a defelction off John Stones to go out for a corner.
26 min: Messi advances on the City penalty area with options to his left and right. He chooses the wrong one, opting to play the ball left when Andre Gomes was in acres of space to his right.
25 min: City win a corner, which is half-cleared. Gundogan shoots straight at Marc-Andre ter Stegen
23 min: From a City free-kick, Messi played the ball to Neymar on the left flank and he hared down the wing before cutting inside and squaring the ball for his team-mate, who had galloped up in support. Messi slots the ball past Cabellero, just inside the left upright.
GOAL! Man City 0-1 Barcelona (Messi 21)
Hmmmm. I may have spoken too soon. Messi starts and finishes a counter-attacking move that left City horribly exposed.
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20 min: Rakitic gets booked for a clumsy challenge on Ilkay Gundogan after a poor first touch undser pressure. They don’t like it up ‘em, these Barcelona boys. City’s intensity when not in possession is causing them all sorts of bother.
18 min: But that was then and this is now. Aguero sprints up the right flank with the ball at his feet for a third time, but Umtiti scurries across to close him down and snuff out the danger.
17 min: On third viewing, I can confirm, that there is absolutely no question Manchester City should have had a penalty. Umtiti stuck his foot out and trod on Sterling’s instep as the Manchester City player attempted to slalom past him.
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15 min: Elsewhere in Europe, it being November, Arsenal are of course already 2-0 down against Ludogorets. You can follow that one here.
13 min: The natives are getting restless and voicing their dissatisfaction over what, I presume, was that penalty shout that didn’t go their way. Having seen it again, I think they have every right to feel aggrieved. Their team are doing well early doors, pressing Barcelona to within an inch of their lives.
10 min: Raheem Sterling is booked for diving in the Barcelona penalty area and on first look it seems harsh. He had dribbled into the area after picking up an Aguero cross from the right as Manchester City attacked on the break. There was contact as hattempted to make his way past Samuel Umtiti and Sterling went down, but I’d need to see it again to ascertain whether or not it was actually a foul. Encouraging signs from City, who are doing well on the break.
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9 min: Fernandinho is summoned for a dressing-0down by referee Viktor Kassai, after lunging into Ivan Rakitic and catching his shin with his studs. He was lucky to avoid a booking there.
9 min: Sterling is fouled again, this time by Andre Gomes.
7 min: Barcelona right-back Lucas Digne gets a ticking-off, but no booking, for grabbing a handful of Raheem Sterling’s shirt and dragging the winger to ground as the winger tried to escape on a counter-attack.
6 min: Caballero sends a loose pass straight out of touch for a throw-in deep in City territory.
5 min: Leo Messi misplaces a pass to Neymar, lofting the ball straight to Pablo Zabaleta.
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4 min: Willy Caballero gets his first touch and rolls the ball out towards the left touchline, where Fernandinho is on hand to take up possession.
3 min: Sergio Aguero is flagged for offside after latching on to a pass from the left touchline from Kevin De Bruyne. He was expecting that after mistiming his run.
2 min: Taking up a position on the left, Neymar curls a cross towards the edge of the Manchester City penalty area, where John Stones heads clear. The ball makes its way back to the Brazilian, who attempts to slide a pass in towards Luis Suarez. Nicolas Otamendi clears this time.
Man City v Barcelona is go ...
1 min: Manchester City’s players line up in light blue shirts, white shorts and light blue socks, while their visitors play in a sort of deep purple shirts with pinkish trim, purple shorts and pinkish socks. Apologies, I don’t have a Dulux colour chart to hand and can’t be more specific.
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Not long now ...
Following a wait in the tunnel during which several mascots and a couple of Manchester City players were gazing in reverential awe at Lionel Messi, the teams emerge and line up for the Champions League anthem. It is loudly booed by the assembled throng.
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In tonight's early kick-off
Besiktas and Napoli have drawn 1-1 in Turkey, a result that has already busted my coupon for tonight. Gah!
Pep Guardiola speaks ...
The Manchester City manager was just a little bit chippy with handsome, urbane and sophisticated BT Sport interviewer Des Kelly, stopping short of snapping at the broadcaster when he was asked if Fernando was omitted in favour of Pablo Zabaleta because he’s not as experienced. “He is experienced but it’s not his position,” said Pep, who also said that “mistakes are a part of the game” when Des asked him about the need to cut them out. He also refused to entertain any chat about the inclusion of Sergio Aguero tonight, following his decision to leave him on the bench in Barcelona.
An email from JR in Illinois
“Watching the warm-ups I think I have an insight into how City plan to stop Barcelona,” he says. “They have had Caballero shine his head to a degree I’ve never seen before. The reflection of the lights off his dome is absolutely blinding.”
Angus Gunn on the bench for Manchester City
Manchester City’s substitute goalkeeper is Angus Gunn, son of former Norwich City goalkeeper Bryan. In an interview earlier this season, the 20-year-old said “I wasn’t old enough to see my dad play but I’ve seen the videos”, a statement which has made your minute-by-minute reporter feel very old indeed. He ain’t half the spit of his old man, mind.
Manchester City v Barcelona line-ups
Man City: Caballero, Zabaleta, Otamendi, Stones, Kolarov, Sterling, De Bruyne, Fernandinho, Gundogan, Silva, Aguero.
Subs: Gunn, Kompany, Fernando, Nolito, Jesus Navas, Clichy, Iheanacho.
Barcelona: ter Stegen, Sergi Roberto, Mascherano, Umtiti, Digne, Rakitic, Busquets, Andre Gomes, Messi, Luis Suarez, Neymar.
Subs: Cillessen, Denis Suarez, Turan, Rafinha, Alcacer, Nili, Marlon.
Referee: Viktor Kassai (Hungary)
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The teams are in ...
Zabaleta and Sergio Aguero both start for Manchester City.
#CityFCB team news:
— BBC 5 live Sport (@5liveSport) November 1, 2016
Caballero comes in for suspended Bravo for #MCFC
Barca have absentees but MSN start.
📻 https://t.co/NI1sjtGRxI #UCL pic.twitter.com/EA4iF5Lrqw
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A look back on their last encounter ...
Barcelona hit four without reply and missed a penalty when the two sides met at Camp Nou the week before last. David Hytner was there for the Guardian and this is how he saw the action unfold.
Luis Enrique speaks ...
Pep’s former team-mate (Barcelona 1996-2001) was predicting more of the same when his side face City tonight. “I expect the same type of game as the last one,” he said. “I don’t think they can be any more aggressive in terms of pressing than last time. They were pressing us up to the stand almost. I expect a similar script. Both teams want the same thing – to make the pitch as big as possible when they have the ball. If they leave spaces behind, we will take advantage. They are identical philosophies.”
He also stressed that his side would not be taking their foot off the gas despite being five points clear at the summitof Group C. “We want to be first in the group,” he said. “We will have to play very well, with and without the ball. City know how to occupy space. We are going to have to play at our top, top level. They are a team with personality. We can be impressed by what [Guardiola] has done in three months. I love his philosophy, I love his ideas. Every month that goes by, they will improve. It will just mean they will get better. The immediate future is promising for them.”
Pep Guardiola speaks ...
At his pre-match press conference, Pep didn’t exactly sound hugely confident of beating his former side. “We know we need to play almost perfectly to win but we will give it a go – and, if not, we will congratulate them on the way they played and set our minds on the game in Monchengladbach,” he said. “In the first half we played well at Camp Nou but obviously their wide players are almost unstoppable. We have important players out too.”
Some pre-match listening
There was some Champions League chat in yesterday’s Football Weekly dispatch from near earth orbit, as well as a look back at the weekend’s Premier League action and other topics du jour including a splendid retirement statement and a ref abandoning a match because one fan was being a little too tiresome.
Early Barcelona team news ...
If Barcelona are to win, they will have to do so without their skipper and midfield maestro Andres Iniesta, as well as defenders Gerard Pique, Jordi Alba and Jérémy Mathieu. He’s not exactly down to the bare bones, mind, as Rafinha, Arda Turan, Denis Suarez and Andre Gomes are all potential replacements for Iniesta. In Barca’s defence, Samuel Umtiti is likely to fill in for Pique alongside Javier Mascherano, while Lucas Digne will almost certainly fill in for Alba at left-back.
EarlyManchester City team news ...
Willy Caballero will start in goal for Manchester City tonight, with Claudio Bravo confined to the naughty step following his dismissal during Manchester City’s 4-0 defeat at the hands of Barcelona two weeks ago. Bravo is the fourth City player to see red in the five meetings between the two sides, a state of affairs that goes some way towards explaining their poor head-to-head record against Barcelona.
Pep Guardiola is also without right-back Bacary Sagna. Having cut his foot at Camp Nou, Pablo Zabaleta trained with his team-mates yesterday but it remains unclear whether he’ll be fit to play on the right side of City’s defence. If he isn’t, Guardiola is likely to go with Fernando, who played there against West Brom on Saturday, or 19-year-old Spaniard Pablo Maffeo, who has played twice for the first team this season, against Steaua in this competition’s qualifying round and Manchester United in the League Cup.
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Match preview ...
Having lost all five of their matches against Barcelona (aggregate score: 11-2) going back just three seasons, Manchester City could do with reversing the trend in their latest encounter with the La Liga champions. Currently second in Group C, just a point ahead of Borussia Mönchengladbach, another defeat or even a draw will relegate City to third place if the German side beat fourth-placed Celtic at Borussia-Park tonight. Kick-off is at 7.45pm (GMT), but we’ll be here with team news and build-up from now. Our chief football correspondent Daniel Taylor was at the pre-match press conferences yesterday and you can read what he made of it all in the accompanying preview.
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