Sterling back in action as Sane steals show
AFTER a difficult few days, Raheem Sterling went back to work and Manchester City went back to winning. Neither Sterling, the victim of racial abuse as City lost at Chelsea on Saturday, nor his team were at their best here on a night when Pep Guardiola’s side started slowly but improved to win with a little to spare. But this was probably a good way for City’s England forward to return to action. It was a low-key evening but — despite missing a clear chance with six minutes to go — Sterling played his part in a good second-half performance and can, hopefully, now proceed with his season, with none of the rancour he experienced at Stamford Bridge at the weekend. What he will have cared about most of all here, of course, was the result and, from that point of view, things began badly. City were slow out of the blocks and, when Aymeric Laporte conceded a penalty in the 16th minute, Andrej Kramaric gave Hoffenheim a lead they deserved. City did get better and struck the frame of the goal twice before Leroy Sane drew them level with a superb free-kick in first-half added time. After that, as Hoffenheim pushed for a famous win, City exploited the gaps and, when Sterling supplied Sane with a neat pass just after the hour, he slid the ball home to make sure the Premier League team progressed to the knockout stage as group winners. It is worth noting that they are the only English side to top their group. Modest Sane insisted he got ‘lucky’ with his free-kick effort, saying: ‘We had some good moments. We made life hard for ourselves but it was a really good game. ‘I was thinking of whether to shoot or not from the free-kick. It was quite a distance. It was quite lucky.’ City manager Guardiola said: ‘We are in the best 16 and now we are going to see the draw, and arrive at the right moment. ‘We started flat because Hoffenheim were so demanding about how they attacked the space and physically they were stronger. ‘Then we started to play. But the result is good. We are first. ‘Sane was aggressive. The first goal was incredible but the second was lucky because the control was not quite good, but he finished.’ Hoffenheim boss Julian Nagelsmann said: ‘I’m proud of the way we have played in the Champions League. ‘As a newcomer
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