With Pep Guardiola and Mauricio Pochettino restoring their Champions League rivalry once again, it does seem as if it is first blood to the former and although the job is only half done, it was a job rather well done by Manchester City.
Because not only have they managed to generate a first-leg advantage in this enticing Semi-final clash, but they’ve also scored two precious away goals at the same time and now PSG find themselves with a considerable mountain to climb.
That’s not to say the mountain is unscalable, especially as Mauricio Pochettino has masterminded wins at the Etihad before, it’s just that there is a sense that the Argentine may fall short when it really matters.
A problem that obviously dogged him while manager of Tottenham and with PSG also finding themselves playing catchup in the race for the Ligue 1 title, Pochettino’s time in France has certainly been a baptism of fire.
A fire that was burning rather bright during the first half of Wednesday’s Champions League Semi-final and with Marquinhos giving the hosts an early advantage, PSG found themselves firmly in the driving seat.
The Brazilian defender was left unmarked in the City penalty area and after meeting Angel Di Maria’s perfectly positioned corner, Ederson was left helpless and somewhat hapless as the ball fizzed past him.
15 minutes in and a goal down, is a scenario where lesser teams would panic and certainly when in the French capital of Paris. However, Manchester City are no lesser team and although they would go into the interval still trailing, there is a sense that they weathered any early storm.
A storm which saw the clouds clear just after the hour and although there was an element of fortune to the equaliser, Kevin De Bruyne or any of his teammates would have absolutely no complaints either.
The Belgian’s menacing cross evaded everyone and although it looked like it was going to nestle outside of the post to safety, there was just enough bend to place the ball past PSG ‘keeper Kaylor Navas.
Parity restored and now it was a question of whether Pep Guardiola was going to stick or twist and with the Carabao Cup winners smelling blood, the former Barcelona and Bayern manager opted to go for the jugular.
With 20 minutes remaining, City found themselves with a freekick on the edge of the PSG penalty box and although De Bruyne looked like he was going to be the man to test Navas, it was Riyad Mahrez who stepped up.
Admittedly the former Leicester star did not strike the ball as clean as he would have liked and on any other day, it would have been collected with ease. However, his effort found the only gap in the PSG wall and in doing so, it fizzed past a statuesque Navas.
The comeback complete and at that point it seemed as if the hosts had lost their heads. Especially as they ended the game with 10 men and with Idrissa Gueye sent of for a cynical foul late on, City’s work in Paris was all but done. Now to advance, they must do the same in Manchester next week.
