Manchester City made it 6 wins from 6 in the UEFA Champions League with a 3-2 win over Red Star Belgrade. Pep Guardiola made 9 changes to his starting eleven from last weekend’s win over Luton Town. Guardiola took the chance to give some of the City’s fringe players an opportunity. It was a special night for the City academy with Micah Hamilton and Oscar Bobb stealing the show in the win.
First half
Pep Guardiola’s much-changed side made a bright start to the game against Red Star. City moved the ball quickly and looked like they were in a menacing mood for their final Champions League group stage game. They maintained possession and kept the home side pinned back for large parts of the opening 20 minutes.
The treble winners were rewarded in the 19th minute with the opener through City Academy graduate Micah Hamilton. A clever move featuring Jack Grealish and Matheus Nunes ended with the youngster played through on the right. Hamilton then fired his shot past Omri Glazer in the Red Star goal to mark his first senior start for City with a spectacular goal. It was a special moment for the youngster who has been with the treble winners since the under 9’s. The goal was well deserved after Pep Guardiola’s side’s fast start.
Manchester City continued to dominate the first half after Hamilton’s opener. The hosts couldn’t live with City’s quick passing and movement as Pep Guardiola’s side looked for a second goal.
City created a few half chances but a combination of the Red Star defence and some misplaced final passes kept the score at 1-nil at the interval.
Second half
Pep Guardiola made one change at the interval as Phil Foden replaced Jack Grealish.
The treble winners picked up where they left off in the first half. Micah Hamilton curled an effort just wide in the 48th minute.
Red Star finally got into the game and forced Stefan Ortega made into action in the 50th minute. He made two spectacular saves to preserve City’s lead.
In the 62nd minute, Manchester City doubled their lead through a quality goal from Oscar Bobb. The young Norwegian made a powerful run from City’s right-hand side and calmly slotted the ball past Glazer to make it 2-nil. It was Bobb’s first senior goal for City and was reminiscent of David Silva in how he took the goal. The 2-nil lead looked to have given City breathing space and all three points.
Red Star got themselves into the contest when they pulled a goal back in the 76th minute. The lively Hwang In-Beom rifled a low drive past Stefan Ortega to make it 2-1 and get the crowd back into the game.
The host’s goal sparked City into life and the impressive Micah Hamilton earned his side a penalty in the 84th minute. His trickery saw him get past Nasser Djiga and the Red Star defender hauled the youngster down to earn City a penalty. Kalvin Phillips calmly dispatched the spot kick to make it 3-1.
City’s third goal looked to have ended the contest but Red Star made it 3-2 in the 91st minute. A thumping Alexander Katai header from a corner gave the home side hope of getting a draw in the final minutes.
The European champions successfully negotiated the final minutes to claim a 3-2 win and make it 6 wins from 6 in Group G.
Summary
It turned out to be a special night for the Manchester City academy at the Rajko Mitic Stadium. Micah Hamilton and Oscar Bobb stole the show with dazzling performances from the youngsters. Mahamadou Susoho also made his first team debut in the second half to make it a night to remember for the youngster.
Manchester City will now prepare for Crystal Palace at the Etihad on Saturday before heading to Saudi Arabia for the FIFA Club World Cup next week.
