PEP ENJOYS
GABRIEL JESUS came off the bench to stop Paris St-Germain from performing some sort of miracle at the Etihad.
Jesus finished from close range in the 77th minute as Manchester City came from behind to deny PSG what would have been one of the greatest smash and grab raids in recent history.
Kylian Mbappe celebrated his 50th appearance in the competition with a clinical strike in the 49th minute against the run of play.
But Raheem Sterling popped up with his third goal in as many games to level matters in the 63rd minute, before Jesus struck the winner to seal top spot for City in Champions League Group A and a place in the knockout stages with one game remaining.
Pep Guardiola made three changes as he went into this superstar showdown without three of his biggest names.
The home side were without injured duo Phil Foden and Jack Grealish, while Kevin De Bruyne continued to isolate after returning a positive Covid test.
There were no such issues for PSG boss
Mauricio Pochettino, though, and he named a strong side that included his trio of mega stars in attack, although Marco Verratti had to settle for a place on the bench.
Both clubs were almost certain to go through to the knockout stages, so this felt like a simple arm wrestle to see who had the biggest ego.
City decided to flex their muscles first and when Rodri looped a header back across goal, Presnel Kimpembe had to clear it from underneath his own crossbar.
Achraf Hakimi then had to do something similar to deflect Riyad Mahrez’s curling strike over the top, before Ilkay Gundogan flashed a glancing header wide as Guardiola’s men continued to create the better chances.
Apart from Lionel Messi nutmegging Sterling with his first touch, there had been
little for PSG to brag about. Nuno Mendes fired a tame shot at Ederson before half time, but by and large City looked in total control.
Ander Herrera almost turned Bernardo Silva’s cross into his own goal and Keylor Navas produced a great save to tip wide Mahrez’s curling effort as PSG continued to ride their luck.
It was turning into an embarrassing onslaught for the French outfit, with Pochettino stood on the sidelines watching Messi and Neymar resemble two icons who could not give a hoot about the outcome.
There was more chance of home fans not booing the Champions League anthem than there was of the PSG pair doing some defending – and Pochettino seemed unwilling or unable to do much about it.
But one mistake against this lot is all it takes and when John Stones made one on the stroke of half time, he was relieved to see Mbappe race clear on goal then fail to hit the target. But the warning shot had been fired and City were not so fortunate four minutes into the second half, when PSG broke the stalemate to leave the Etihad in silence.
Messi was at the heart of the build-up, combining with Neymar before picking out Mbappe in acres of space at the far post and he drilled a shot through the legs of Ederson to put the visitors ahead.
But the lead lasted barely 10 minutes before City hit back, with Kyle Walker charging onto Gundogan’s clever pass before finding Sterling, who bundled the ball home from close range to level matters before Jesus gave his side the win they deserved.
MAN CITY (4-3-3): Ederson 7; Walker 7, Dias 7, Stones 6, Cancelo 6; Rodrigo 7, Gundogan 7, Zinchenko 6 (Jesus 54, 6); MAHREZ 9, Bernardo 7, Sterling 7.
PARIS ST-GERMAIN (4-3-3): Navas 8; Hakimi 6, Marquinhos 7, Kimpembe 7, Mendes 7 (Kehrer 68, 6); Paredes 7, Herrera 6 (Danilo 61, 6), Gueye 7 (Di Maria 68, 6); Messi 6, Mbappe 7, Neymar 6.
REFEREE: Daniele Orsato (Italy) 7.