Sevilla vs Manchester City. UEFA Champions League Group D.
Ramon Sanchez PizjuanAttendance39,261.
Wednesday 4 November 2015 15:43, UK
Manchester City qualified for the Champions League knockout phase after beating Sevilla 3-1 at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium on Tuesday night.
The visitors scored three times before half-time through Raheem Sterling, Fernandinho and Wilfried Bony, with Benoit Tremoulinas replying in between for the Spaniards.
However, with Borussia Monchengladbach failing to beat Juventus in the other Group D contest, City's place in the last 16 of Europe's premier club competition was confirmed with two games still to play.
Before the pre-match Champions League anthem, which was again drowned out by booing from the visiting fans, City boss Manuel Pellegrini surprised many by opting to leave £56m recruit Kevin De Bruyne - who has scored six goals in 12 games for the club this season - on the bench.
Sterling was recalled to the starting line-up in his place, while the visitors were also without the injured Samir Nasri, David Silva, Sergio Aguero and Pablo Zabaleta for the trip to Andalucia, although they hardly missed their absent stars in the opening 45 minutes as they made a sensational start to the game.
City led after just eight minutes when Yaya Toure was given too much time and space on the edge of the area to pick out Sterling's run in the box, and the little forward kept his cool to beat Sergio Rico from a tight angle for his first Champions League goal for his new team.
The visitors had soon doubled their lead after that man Sterling robbed Sevilla captain Coke on the left-hand touchline, before the England international picked out Bony in the penalty area.
And despite the striker seeing his shot pushed aside by Rico, Fernandinho followed up to tap home City's second goal just two minutes and 49 seconds after their opener.
Incredibly, City almost made it 3-0 a minute later, only for the increasingly busy Rico to turn Jesus Navas' shot on to the post, a save that looked to have taken on more importance as the home team gradually gained a foothold in the contest.
Sevilla striker Fernando Llorente, who started in attack in place of injured top scorer Kevin Gameiro, should have cut the deficit in half on the quarter-hour mark, but somehow failed to hit the target from six yards out after good approach play down the right by Ever Banega.
However, that miss was soon forgotten when Tremoulinas pulled a goal back after 25 minutes following a powerful run into the box by Coke, before the skipper's clever dink from the byline picked out the unmarked Frenchman to head home from virtually on the goal-line.
In fact, Sevilla very nearly found themselves back on level terms minutes later, but for a brilliant reaction save at his near post by Joe Hart to keep out Grzegorz Krychowiak's header, only for the visitors to restore their two-goal lead nine minutes before the break, with Hart again playing a key role.
The goalkeeper's long clearance up field unerringly picked out Navas on the right-hand touchline, and the winger - who made almost 400 appearances for Sevilla - then went on a mazy dribble, before finding Bony some six yards from goal.
And the Ivorian made no mistake with an easy side-footed finish for his first Champions League goal for City, as the visitors became the first team ever to score three goals in a European game at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium.
The second half, in comparison, was a tame affair, which was exactly how City wanted it as they looked to protect their two-goal lead, which in truth they managed with ease.
Hart was barely called into action in the visitors' goal and it was City who actually came the closest to scoring again after the break.
However, Sevilla No 1 Rico made an impressive reflex save to deny Fernando 10 minutes after the interval after fine approach play by Sterling, before captain Toure was inches away from scoring a fourth with 20 minutes to go, only for the Ivorian's curling effort to just miss the target.
Those near misses did not matter, though, as City became the first English side to win at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium, a result that also ended Sevilla's recent run of 10 home victories in a row in Europe.
