Guardiola deserved an Oscar for Bobb and KDB masterstroke ANDY

WITH a double fist-pump towards the very excitable Newcastle dugout, Pep Guardiola saluted Kevin De Bruyne’s brilliance.

But he was not just celebrating a typically sublime De Bruyne goal, he was celebrating the return of the man who makes the champions the best version of themselves. Simple as that. If De Bruyne now stays fit, City will surely retain their crown.

It had plenty of flaws, but, in many ways, this was a statement performance from Manchester City.

They responded to a catastrophic few first-half pummelled, as they were for long periods here.

And if there is a single major threat to City’s dominance in any given game, it is complacency.

That threat materialised after Bernardo Silva’s impudent finish had given Guardiola’s team a thoroughly deserved, if belated, lead.

There is a fine line between swaggering and showboating – and City crossed it.

Yes, it was a fine pass from Bruno Guimaraes that released Alexander Isak for Newcastle’s equaliser – and it was a fine finish from Isak,

But the casual defending, from the usually reliable Kyle

Walker among others, was unforgivable.

Ditto for the otherwise splendid Anthony Gordon strike that put the home side ahead – a strike Ederson might have fancied making more of a fist of keeping out than his replacement, Stefan Ortega, did.

Ortega came on after Ederson was injured in a collision with Sean Longstaff when a flag was raised late to call what seemed an obvious offside.

Understandably, there will now be a clamour for assistant referees to raise their flags if they believe a player is offside, particularly as John Stones was injured in similar circumstances