City’s win arrested a run of three successive defeats and left manager Manuel Pellegrini feeling vindicated after the hoo-ha over his weakened FA Cup selection which, undoubtedly, raised the pressure on him to win this fixture and relaunch City’s faltering campaign. He delivered.
This tie against the Ukrainian champions had been City’s prize for winning their group ahead of Juventus – even though they lost home and away to the Italians – Seville and Borussia Mönchengladbach and afforded them the most winnable draw of the three Premier League clubs who made it through to this stage of the competition.
City made it clear to what extent they would prioritise this game with that selection for the FA Cup fifth-round defeat by Chelsea, which effectively tossed the tie away. The decision magnified the attention on the players as well the manager. Failing to reach the last eight became simply unacceptable.
Ten changes were made here. Of those who started, only Fernando had played on Sunday, with City having flown out early – on Monday – for a tie against opposition who finished runners-up to Chelsea in their group and reached the knockout stages for the first time in 16 years.
Who dominated at Olympic Stadium?
Dynamo’s rust was evident. It had been more than two months since they had played a competitive match and that was their final Champions League group match, which they won behind closed doors after a stadium ban was imposed for their supporters’ racist behaviour.
The ban had been due to affect this match but was reduced on appeal, with the atmosphere inside the vast, impressive stadium, built for Euro 2012, rising as the chanting from the home fans was coordinated through a megaphone.
Cries of “Dynamo” rang out as the team’s poster boy Andriy Yarmolenko swung in a free-kick, then collected a half-clearance and drew a clumsy-ish save from Joe Hart, who pushed the ball up on to the top of the crossbar before it dropped behind for a corner, which he punched away.
Dynamo Kiev's attacking stats
Soon afterwards, Fernando carelessly lost possession and Lukasz Teodorczyk dragged a shot wide but, just as it seemed City would be punished for their sloppiness, they struck. A David Silva corner was headed down by Yaya Touré for Agüero to collect the ball nimbly and drive a powerful low shot past goalkeeper Oleksandr Shovkovskiy.
The striker’s 16th goal in his past 17 Champions League starts earned a precious advantage, albeit one gifted through some appalling defending from Dynamo, who now appeared to be struggling with the speed of the occasion as City exposed their lack of sharpness.
Dynamo lost the ball again. Again Silva was involved, slipping a pass wide to Agüero, who drove his shot across goal and beyond the far post. Dynamo were dispirited and desperately needed to gain a foothold in a tie that already appeared to be going away from them. City sensed they could kill it and, as Dynamo once more lost the ball, a chance opened up for Touré but Shovkovskiy pushed away his angled near-post shot for another corner. Silva’s effort was then deflected into the goalkeeper’s arms.
Man City's attacking stats
A second goal looked inevitable and duly came with Agüero again heavily involved, as he collected possession and cleverly back-heeled into Raheem Sterling’s path. The winger attacked the byline and crossed low to the far post for Silva to strike the ball into the roof of the net from close range.
City poured forward. Agüero steered a shot across goal; Fernando headed over after a City free-kick.
Dynamo were far more dynamic after half-time. Yarmolenko went close with a cross-shot before City were denied a penalty when Sterling appeared to be clipped inside the area after a rapid counter-attack. City needed to regain control of a contest they had so utterly dominated.
Instead Dynamo struck. The goal came when Nicolás Otamendi intercepted a cross only to head into the path of Vitaliy Buyalskiy, who had much to do as he ran on to the ball and beat Hart with a fierce first-time shot. Crucially, it took a deflection off Otamendi to wrong-foot the goalkeeper. City were stunned.
Yarmolenko crossed into Hart’s hands, failing to find substitute Junior Moraes, before the goalkeeper produced an outstanding one-handed save from Buyalskiy after another cutback. Touré should have ended it for City but, just five yards out, headed wastefully wide from Sterling’s cross. He could not believe it and neither could anyone else.
The Ivorian made amends, however, emphatically so. In the 90th minute, he collected possession and struck one of those unstoppable curling shots that arced around Shovkovskiy and into the net. City are almost certainly through.
Kiev v Man City
- Telegraph