MANCHESTER, England -- Pep Guardiola and Man City put on a stunning display to beat Barcelona 3-1 at the Etihad. Here are three points from Tuesday's Champions League clash.
1. Guardiola, Man City get landmark win
Manchester City hired Pep Guardiola for precisely these sorts of occasions and these sort of results. They dream of emulating Barcelona, and on Tuesday night, they finally beat Barcelona. It was a landmark win and a vital one. City had lost all five previous meetings with the club Guardiola adorned as player and manager, conceding 11 times. But they won this time by scoring three goals against the 2015 European champions and retaining second place in Group C on an extraordinary night.
If reaching the Champions League semifinal last season was a sign of belated progress in continental competitions from City, this was another. The fact that a team often overawed by Barcelona came from behind felt significant, as did the way one of Guardiola's signings proved decisive.
Ilkay Gundogan scored twice, giving him a second successive brace. The German's double was completed in strange style -- his second goal saw Jesus Navas' cross bounce off Sergio Aguero when the Argentine seemed likelier to score -- but each was fashioned in improbable fashion. The creator of his first, with a misplaced pass, was Sergi Roberto. It was a rare occasion this season when City could be grateful a goal stemmed from a side giving the ball away in their own final third.
Following Lionel Messi's opener, Barcelona had appeared in complete control but allowed City to score either side of halftime. When one of Spain's World Cup winners (Sergio Busquets) fouled another (David Silva), Kevin de Bruyne curled a free kick beyond Marc-Andre ter Stegen. Guardiola stayed in his seat as others jumped for joy, perhaps concerned with how Barcelona would respond, yet his charges continued to excel. De Bruyne then clipped the outside of the post in a second half in which City's energy was infectious.
Barcelona might have missed the calming influence of Andres Iniesta and the defensive nous of Gerard Pique and Jordi Alba, but they looked unusually fragile and fallible. The Etihad Stadium is often quiet on European nights, but it was bouncing on Tuesday, as City surged to a victory they will long remember.
2. Sterling troubles Barcelona
Gundogan's goals were comparatively simple finishes for a footballer of his calibre. They shined a light on others as well. For his equaliser, Raheem Sterling showed the decision-making and presence of mind to see the German positioned better and deliver a seemingly simple square pass. It capped an influential display from Sterling. There have been times when his £49 million fee has seemed inflated, with his status as the most expensive Englishman ever prompting mockery.
Yet there is a growing body of evidence that Barcelona can struggle against Sterling. Jeremy Mathieu was dismissed for fouling him two weeks ago. Neymar was booked for bringing him down on this occasion. Barcelona were fortunate others didn't suffer the same sanction.
The game began to a backdrop of dissatisfaction. The City supporters booed the UEFA anthem, as is their wont. They booed again when referee Viktor Kassai opted not to book Lucas Digne for tugging Sterling and jeered rather more fiercely when Samuel Umtiti felled the winger in the penalty area. Kassai cautioned Sterling for supposed simulation instead.
At such moments, it is understandable that feelings of injustice mount. Each of the four red cards City received against Barcelona were justified, but there are other decisions that have not gone their way. Given City's propensity to miss spot kicks -- they've squandered four already this season -- there is no guarantee that an award of one would have brought a goal. But it seemed to set the tone for another hard-luck story.
Instead, Sterling produced the right response, one he could have garnished with a goal. When Aguero released him straight after halftime, his initial touch was poor, and his second was a shot into the side-netting. Yet it was another moment when he eluded his immediate opponent.
Digne looked a weak link, an inadequate deputy for the injured Alba. Sterling and his replacement, Navas, both seemed too speedy for him. They set the tone for a night when City were fearless, positive in their pressing and emboldened by a belief that they could take the game to Barcelona.
3. Messi finds the net against City again
It is easy to identify City's tormentor but altogether harder to halt him. Guardiola possesses inside knowledge of Messi. He polished a raw diamond, built a Barcelona team around him and helped turn a talent into the outstanding player of his generation. For four years, Guardiola could savour the sight of managers who were frustrated by Messi's brilliance. Not now.
The Argentinian was comparatively quiet for the first 20 minutes. In the 21st, however, he was deadly. He took his tally against City to four goals inside a fortnight, slotting under Willy Caballero to complete a wonderful counterattack. Javier Mascherano began it with a defiant block, Messi released Neymar and ran 70 yards to accept the Brazilian's return ball.
It meant that of Barcelona's last six goals against City, Messi had scored two and created the other two. It also showed that despite an image cemented in the Guardiola days of being obsessed by perpetual possession, the Spanish side can be thrillingly direct. It was an illustration of how the best teams can transition from defence to attack in an instant.
Yet his goal was to prove Barcelona's lone strike. They were inches from scoring a second after the interval, with Andre Gomes rattling the bar after Luis Suarez had nutmegged Nicolas Otamendi. Perhaps this will go down as one of the quieter games for Barcelona's prolific front three; they mustered only one goal and one assist between them. Such are the standards they have set that it almost felt underwhelming, glorious as Messi's goal was.