That’s all from me for tonight. City have mugged Bayern Munich with a classic smash and grab. They capitalised on two uncharacteristic errors to steal all three points against a Bayern Munich that was reduced to 10 men after 20 minutes. Thanks for your time and your emails and enjoy the rest of your evening.
Full time: Manchester City 3-2 Bayern Munich
Not for the first time this season, the remarkable Sergio Aguero almost singlehandedly carries his otherwise under-performing team to victory. Manchester City have been gifted all three points here by some remarkably generous Bayern defending. They are level on points with Roma and CSKA Moscow and will advance to the last 16 if the beat the Italians and CSKA lose in Germany. A draw might even suffice for City in Rome, if CSKA lose in Munich.
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90+3 min: Aguero goes off to an ovation from City’s fans, and is replaced by Martin Demichelis. It’s pretty much the last action of the game.
90+2 min: Bayern’s defending was absolutely dreadful there and City capitalise on their generosity. On the edge of his own penalty area, Jerome Boateng dithered over a clearance and Sergio Aguero nipped in to steal the ball off his toe, advance a few yards and stab the ball past Neuer and into the bottom right-hand corner.
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GOAL! Manchester City 3-2 Bayern Munich (Aguero 90+1)
That is absolutely sensational from Sergio Aguero, who looks to have won the game for Manchester City with a sublime hat-trick. If they can hold on here, a win in Rome in a fortnight will see them through to the last 16 as long as CSKA don’t win in Munich.
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90 min: Zabaleta pushes his luck with wo more quick fouls in succession, the second on Pierre Holbjerg looking eminently bookable. He gets away with them.
88 min: Manchester City’s players surge forward in search of a win they don’t really need, leaving themselves open to a Bayern counter-attack. Pablo Zabaleta gets booked for a foul on Juan Bernat.
GOAL! Manchester City 2-2 Bayern Munich (Aguero 86)
A rare mistake from Xabi Alonso gifts possession to Sergio Aguero, who hares off towards the Bayern goal. Neuer dashes off his line and narrows the angle, but the Argentinian makes no mistake as he rolls a diagonal shot into the bottom right-hand corner. That’s a great finish.
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83 min: Enter Shaqiri. Bayern Munich replace Robert Lewandowski with Xherdan Shaqiri.
80 min: Bayern substitution: Bastian Schweinsteiger on, Franck Ribery off. This is only Schweinsteiger’s second appearance of the season, as he eases himself back into the swing of things having finally recovered from his World Cup exertions.
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78 min: Manuel Neuer faffs around while taking a goal-kick, incurring the ire of City fans who whistle and jeer him. I’m not sure what they’re upset about, their own players have wasted most of the past hour. Neuer is booked for his tomfoolery.
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76 min: Manchester City win a free-kick deep in Bayern territory and very wide on the right. Nasri sends the ball into the mixer and Neuer punches it to the edge of the penalty area, where Zabaleta shapes to score with a thunderbastard. Robben blocks.
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74 min: Aguero pings the ball towards Frank Lampard in the Bayern penalty area about eight yards from goal, but it gets caught under his feet and Dante nudges clear.
70 min: Samir Nasri sends in an inswinger, which Neuer gathers at his second attempt. The atmosphere at the Etihad seems very flat. Apart from a brief spell after Aguero opened the scoring, Bayern’s travelling fans have been bossing proceedings in the singing and chanting stakes even more emphatically than the players they’re cheering have been dominating on-field matters.
69 min: City pass and probe in Bayern territory, eventually fashioning a long-range shooting opportunity for Frank Lampard. His surface to air screamer brings a decent save out of Neuer, who tips the ball over the bar for a corner.
68 min: City break on a counter-attack and galloping down the inside right, Lewandowski attempts to pick out Robben, who is up in support. His pass is under-cooked, allowing Kompany to intercept - another let-off for City. They make another substitution: Bacary Sagna makes way for Pablo Zabaleta.
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66 min: City substitution: James Milner off, Stevan Jovetic on.
65 min: Arjen Robben goes on a run through the centre and decides to have a pop from distance when it becomes apparent nobody in a City shirt can be bothered closing him down. His low drive is feeble and doesn’t trouble Joe Hart.
63 min: From midfield, Frank Lampard attempts to send an arcing pass over the Bayern defence for Sergio Aguero to chase. The Argentinian is penalised for being offside.
61 min: More excellent possession football from Bayern, with even their goalkeeper getting in on the action. Neuer saunters out of his penalty area to pick out a team-mate with a deft chip under pressure from two City players.
60 min: Gael Clichy gets a yellow card for a petulant, completely unnecessary trip on Jerome Boateng out by the touchline, well inside his own half.
59 min: Remember that even if City lose tonight, they still won’t be out of the Champions League. A win by three or more goals away at Roma would be enough to see them into the last 16 if CSKA Moscow don’t beat Bayern Munich.
57 min: Robert Lewandowski is penalised for fouling Gael Clichy as he tries to prevent the City full-back from taking the ball from him out on the touchline. Free-kick for Man City deep inside their own half.
56 min: Assorted Bayern Munich players ping the ball to each other in the middle third. Their dominance, considering they’ve been down to 10 men since the 20th minute, is ridiculous.
54 min: Sagna and Navas combine down the right, as City try to pick their way through the Bayern defence. The ball is played to Nasri on the right side of the Bayern penalty area, but his attempt to play it to Navas is intercepted and Bayern embark on another counter-attack.
52 min: From the edge of the penalty area on the left, James Milner attempts to curl the ball around Manuel Neuer and inside the angle of crossbar and upright. It’s a decent effort, but not good enough. Wide.
50 min: Navas is in the thick of the action as City attack down the right flank again. He picks up a pass from Nasri and his low diagonal drive is blocked by Manuel Neuer and put out for a corner, from which nothing comes.
48 min:Jesus Navas gallops down the right flank only to be robbed of the ball by Boateng before he could get a cross in.
47 min: Fernando is robbed by Alonso in midfield and the man of the match thus far surges forward, plays the ball wide to Ribery and then picks up the return pass. He elects to have a shot, but spoons his effort over the bar from distance with his left foot.
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Second half kicks off ...
46 min: Bayern Munich get the ball rolling and immediately put United under pressure, with Arjen Robben skipping deep into City territory. City clear.
For a gallery of photos from tonight’s match at the Etihad, click on this link.
Since going down to 10 men, @FCBayernEN completed have twice as many passes as @MCFC (222 v 108 via @StatsZone) pic.twitter.com/EfvK4t0Cpf
— Total Football (@TotalFootballFC) November 25, 2014
Stat attack II: First half passes: Manchester City’s midfielders: 59-70 Xabi Alonso. “It’s deathly quiet in the stadium,” says ITV presenter Adrian Chiles.
Stat attack: Bayern Munich have had 65% of the possessionin the first half, despite having been down to 10 men for more than half of it. “It’s been a lesson in how to keep the ball and how to keep possession,” says Paul Scholes, who goes on to single out Xabi Alonso for praise.
Half-time at the Etihad: Man City 1-2 Bayern Munich
Seemingly in control of the game with a one-goal lead against 10 men, Manchester City have pressed the self-destruct button again. They’ve conceded two very soft goals and I think their goalkeeper Joe Hart could have done better for both of them. Having failed to get his positioning right for Alonso’s free-kick, he appeared to get caught in no-man’s land as Lewandwski forced his way between Kompany and Sagna, neither of whom covered themselves in glory either.
GOAL! Manchester City 1-2 Bayern Munich (Lewandowski 44)
In the City penalty area Lewandowski gets between Kompany and Bacary Sagna to outmuscle the latter and get on the end of a Boateng cross from the right and send the ball looping over Joe Hart and into the goal off his shoulder. Manchester City have now conceded two goals to 10-man Bayern.
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42 min: For all his strengths as a goalkeeper, Joe Hart is always good for a bluner and he’ll be furious with himself for letting that one in. Despite having assembled a long defensive wall in front of him, he didn’t appear to have any faith in it allowing the ball to be rifled into the portion of the goal he should have been minding. Not only did he not stop it, he didn’t even see it fizz past him.
GOAL! Manchester City 1-1 Bayern Munich (Alonso 39)
Xabi Alonso takes the free kick and scores. He shoots low and hard into the space left as his team-mate Dante steps off the end of a long defensive wall. The ball screams into the bottom right hand corner. That’s a fine free-kick, but you’d have to say Joe Hart was badly at fault there.
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37 min: Bayern Munich advance into City territory with Ribery and Robben combining down the right flank. The ball’s shifted left, where Alonso combines with Ribery. They eventually win a free-kick in a great position just outside the penalty area, just to the left of the D, when Eliaquim Mangala trips Lewandowski.
34 min: A free-kick routine City have clearly practiced on the training ground results in Frank Lampard being teed up for a long-range effort from about 25 yards out. He shoots high and wide after the ball appears to take a bobble while being rolled his way.
32 min: Bayern advance, with Rafinha running on to a pass to the right touchline from Pierre Holbjerg, their other Champions League debutant. Gael Clichy intervenes and City go on the attack again. Navas wins a free-kick about 40 yards from the Bayern goal, well right of centre.
29 min: City are looking much more confident and bullish since scoring and the goal has really got their supporters going. Between this and the result in Moscow earlier, it’s shaping up to be a perfect evening for the citizens,
28 min: City win a corner, which Nasri sends in from the left. He tries to pick out Kompany, but his delivery is too high. Xabi Alonso heads clear.
27 min: Bacary Sagna gallops down the right and sends in a cross, which Alonso delas with efficiently.
25 min: Bayern Munich substitution: Champions League debutant Sebastien Rode makes way for Dante, who fills the Benatia-shaped hole in the heart of Bayern’s defence.
23 min: Bayern Munich can have no complaints about that penalty decision. The ball was played into the penalty area for Aguero to chase and he got in front of the centre-half, who dived in. He didn’t get near the ball and felled the City striker; after a long pause, possibly while in consultation with his goal-line official (you know, those ones who lots of people presume don’t do anything), the referee blew his whistle, pointed to the spot and produced his red card.
GOAL! Manchester City 1-0 Bayern Munich (Aguero 22pen)
Aguero scores from the spot with a fine strike, shooting just inside the right upright. Neuer went the right way, but couldn’t reach it. City lead 1-0 and Bayern are down to 10 men.
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Penalty for Manchester City
20 min: Medhi Benatia gets a straight red card for taking Sergio Aguero down in the penalty area, preventing a clear goalscoring opportunity in the process.
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19 min: City’s fans finally make themselves heard above the din being made by the visiting fans. “We don’t need an [effing] drum!” they chant.
#MCFC 0-0 #FCBayern City must win but Bayern completed nearly 100 more passes in 1st 13mins: http://t.co/9YAkmnRvHP pic.twitter.com/69ovfpbWC7
— Stats Zone (@StatsZone) November 25, 2014
17 min: Arjen Robben scuttles into the Manchester City penalty area, looking to see if he can pick out a pass to Lewandowski or Rode. He’s crowded off the ball and dispossessed by James Milner.
16 min: City win a corner, after James Milner had a cross diverted out of playafter a promising attack involving himself, Navas and Lampard. Nothing comes of it.
15 min: City win a throw-in deep in Bayern territory, which Sagna takes. Medhi Benatia clears for Bayern.
13 min: City’s fans may have turned out in force tonight, but Bayern’s are having the better of the early exchanges in the stands. They’ve provided a non-stop rhythmic soundtrack since the first whistle. City could do with an early goal to give their fans something to sing about.
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10 min: Arjen Robben tries a long-range shot from outside the penalty area, attempting to beat Hart with a low drive towards the goalkeeper’s near post. Wide.
9 min: Joe Hart is called into action to deny Rode a scoring opportunity. The midfielder found himself in space in the penalty area with a ball from Arjen Robben at his feet, but Hart dashed off his line to save with his chest. It’s been a fairly lively start.
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8 min: Sebastian Rode, who is making his European debut in midfield for Bayern tonight, charges down the inside left flank with the ball at his feet and runs it out of play for a City goal kick. He waves a hand at Robert Lewandowski by way of apology for not getting a cross in.
7 min: James Milner puts the ball out of play for a Bayern throw-in just inside the Manchester City half.
6 min: Frank Lampard makes a run up in support of Sergio Aguero and attempts to get on the end of a cross from the left flank from the boot of Gael Clichy. It’s a mite wayward and the ball goes out for a goal kick.
4 min: Jerome Boateng surges through midfield, before pinging the ball wide to Arjen Robben on the right flank. His touch is poor and allows Samir Nasri to rob the ball from him. Robben promptly nicks it back. Bayern continue to pass and probe.
3 min: Bayern advance into the City half, probing for an opening. Nasri wins the ball back for City and plays it forward. City are playing with a real sense of urgency in these very early stages.
2 min: Manchester City go straight on the attack, the ball finding it’s way to Samir Nasri on the inside left. He advances on goal and attempts to fire off a shot, but his effort is blocked by a defender and loops up in the air. Bayern clear.
And we're off ...
1 min: Manchester City kick off in a stadium that looks fairly packed. They’re wearing their usual home kit of light blue shirts, shorts and socks, while Bayern wear red shirts with blue stripes, red shorts and red socks.
Not long now: The players are in the tunnel, where Vincent Kompany has just had a long whisper in City coach Bryan Kidd’s ear. Out they march on to the pitch, with Kompany leading out the hosts, while Manuel Neuer does the honours for Bayern Munich.
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Not playing news: If Manchester City are to win tonight, they’ll have to do so without Yaya Toure and Fernandinho (confined to the naughty step) and David Silva (injured). It’s a tall order, but they’re immense wealth means they’ve plenty of strength in depth. On ITV, punditry’s Paul Scholes reckons it’ll be a big night for Frank Lampard.
Amazingly: Manchester City can afford to lose tonight and still be in contention to qualify for the last 16. They’d need to beat Roma by three goals and hope Bayern Munich see off CSKA Moscow. It would be a tall order, but not a bad lifeline for a team going into the final round of group games with two points.
Should City win tonight, they’ll be level on points with CSKA and Roma going into the final round of games. And in the event of three sides finishing level on points after the final round of group games, the tie-breaker is a mini-league between them, not counting their results against the group winners, Bayern Munich. Roma would have a big advantage in that scenario, having thrashed CSKA 5-1 at home.
It’s also worth noting that no matter what happens tonight, Manchester City need Bayern Munich to avoid defeat in the final match against CSKA Moscow. If the German side lose that game, Manchester City are out.
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Manchester City v Bayern Munich line-ups
Man City: Hart, Sagna, Kompany, Mangala, Clichy, Fernando, Milner, Jesus Navas, Lampard, Nasri, Aguero.
Subs: Caballero, Zabaleta, Demichelis, Jovetic, Boyata, Glendon, Pozo.
Bayern Munich: Neuer, Rafinha, Benatia, Boateng, Bernat,
Hojbjerg, Alonso, Rode, Robben, Lewandowski, Ribery.
Subs: Zingerle, Dante, Shaqiri, Gaudino, Gotze, Muller, Schweinsteiger.
Referee: Pavel Kralovec (Czech Republic)
Big news from Moscow: CSKA have scored a freakish late goal with the last kick of the game to draw level with Roma. The upshot? Manchester City can now afford to lose tonight and still be in contention to finish second in the group going into the final round of matches. Vasili Berezutski did his own team and City a huge favour, scoring directly from a long way out with what looked suspiciously like a cross.
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Team news: I’ll bring you the line-ups in full just as soon as they appear on the wires. In the meantime ...
TEAM NEWS @MCFC: Hart, Sagna, Kompany (C), Mangala, Clichy, Fernando, Navas, Lampard, Milner, Nasri, Aguero #cityvbayern
— Manchester City FC (@MCFC) November 25, 2014
Line up FCB/Aufstellung: Neuer (C) - Alonso, Benatia, Ribery, Lewandowski, Robben, Rafinha, Boateng, Bernat, Rode, Hojbjerg | ^M.Hörwick
— FC Bayern München (@FCBayern) November 25, 2014
Meanwhile back in September: An unlikely last-minute volley from the right boot of Bayern Munich’s Jerome Boateng was the only goal of the game when these two sides met at the Allianz Arena. Daniel Taylor was there for the Guardian and you can read his report on the match by clicking on this link.
Barry will be here soon. While you wait, have a read of Paul Doyle’s profile on Bayern Munich birthday boy (and all-round don) Xabi Alonso.
Depicting one of the most decorated footballers of the modern era as something of a surprise package seems nonsensical, yet the understated way in which Xabi Alonso plays is such that the full influence of the World Cup winner, two-times Champions League winner and two-times European Championship conqueror can go unnoticed. Until, that is, folks see him play first-hand, at which point his grandeur is properly appreciated. Regular watchers of Bayern Munich have relished finding that out this season.
Even Bayern’s opponents have been amazed. “The first 20 minutes against Schalke were a revelation for me,” said the Borussia Dortmund manager Jürgen Klopp after Alonso’s debut for Bayern at the end of August less than two days after his sudden transfer from Real Madrid. “It was crazy, I have never seen such a thing,” Klopp added. What wowed the Dortmund coach was the immaculate way in which Alonso orchestrated his new side despite being unfamiliar with his team-mates. The Spain manager, Vicente del Bosque, though well aware of Alonso’s abilities, was also impressed and said the seamlessness way Alonso adapted to a new team and a new league was “utter madness”.
