MAN CITY 2, SWANSEA CITY 1
When Manchester City were in need of a miracle, Gabriel Jesus performed one with an injury-time winning goal for Manchester City.
It looked as though Swansea City, rejuvenated following Paul Clement’s appointment as head coach, would leave the Etihad with a point until Jesus’ late 92nd minute intervention.
And it is easy to see why the newly-signed Brazilian is keeping Sergio Aguero, one of the world’s leading strikers, out of the side as he has made an instant impact and has certainly hit the ground running.
Jesus has certainly impressive stats with three goals in his first two starts. Following a goal on his full Premier League debut at West Ham, the 19-year-old marked his Etihad bow with a brace.
But you only had to look at Jesus’ overall contribution to see why he is keeping Aguero on the sidelines as he offers far more than just goals – against the Swans he had 53 touches, made 37 passes, created three chances, had four goal attempts, three of which were on target and scored twice.
It was just as well Jesus was on top of his game as City so nearly let another two points slip. This win lifted them to second spot, but they are 10 points shy of runaway leaders Chelsea.
Jesus put City ahead early in the game and it looked as though it would be a runaway victory as the Swans were overwhelmed. They had lost all five previous Premier League visits in which they had conceded 12 goals and scored only two.
The Swans dug in and inched their way into the game, Gylfi Sigurdsson drawing them level with nine minutes left.
While Aguero was summoned from the bench after the Swans’ leveller, it was Jesus who struck again at the death to spare City’s blushes.
City manager Pep Guardiola praised Jesus adding it was “not easy” to leave out Aguero.
He said: “Jesus made a lot of things happen with and without the ball. He is a guy in the box with an instinct to score goals.
“He is 19 years of age and Manchester City is delighted what he has done until now.”
Guardiola added it was not easy leaving out Aguero who, he added, will have a big part to play in remainder of the season.
“Sergio is an important player and he will play with and without Gabriel. But I decided to go with the lads who played against Crystal Palace and West Ham,” he said.
Guardiola conceded his side was lucky to win with such a late goal.
He said: “We were close to not winning the game but, over the 90 minutes, I think we deserved to win for the chances we created and the way we played.
“The gap between the first and second half was too big and it was similar to the Middlesbrough game and we were lucky to win in the last minute.
“The performance in the first half was brilliant, but credit to Swansea for the way they played in the second half.
“I happy with our performance in general and the attitude of the players.”
Clement thought his side merited a draw after their second-half showing. He was also disappointed with City’s winning goal claiming the free kick was taken from the wrong place and with a rolling ball adding had it been taken correctly his side would have been better prepared to defend it.
Clement added his side was lucky to only be one goal down at the break.
He said: “It was a frustrating first half. We were under a lot of pressure from the first to 45th minute and to be only one goal down was a bonus for us as it could have been a lot worse.
“There was a lot of things to improve on, and it was good to get half time to sort things out.
“We responded well and I thought we were the better team in the second half and to concede after ninety-two-and-a-half or 93 minutes was disappointing and a big blow.”
City made two changes from the side that won so impressively at West Ham in midfield.
Gael Clichy and Fernandinho replaced Nicolas Otamendo and Bacary Sagna who didn’t feature in the matchday 18.
That meant there was no Aguero in the starting line up for the second successive match as Jesus again got the nod.
And it was Brazilian Jesus who had the first chance of the game in the second minute, firing over from David Silva’s left-wing cross.
City also had an early penalty appeal rejected after Jesus tangled with Swans’ defender Alfie Mawson.
The breakthrough came in the 11th minutes through Jesus with his second goal in two starts for City.
Silva wriggled free on the left before crossing. As Raheem Sterling and Martin Olsson challenged the ball bounced up for Jesus to volley home from six yards.
City would have doubled their lead midway through the half but for a brilliant save from Lukasz Fabianski to turn over a 25-yard free kick from Yaya Toure.
Fabianski denied Toure for a second time, but this was a more routine save low to his left to keep out a drive from 20 yards.
City had 10 first half goal attempts to none from the Swans.
But the visitors had their first strike at goal soon after the restart when Sigurdsson’s free kick was tipped on to the upright by keeper Willy Caballero diving high to his right.
City were denied a second by the frame of the goal as Leroy Sane whipped a low cross from the left that struck the near upright.
Swans had another chance when Mawson glanced a close-range header wide from a Sigurdsson corner.
City made their first change in the 78th minute when Pablo Zabaleta replaced Kevin De Bruyne. He slotted in at right back enabling Fernandinho to switch into his normal midfield role.
Swans, who had become more of a threat as the game progressed, equalised in the 81st minute after a neat build up ended with Sigurdsson firing to the left of Caballero from 22 yards.
Guardiola’s response was to summon Aguero from the bench in place of Sterling as City desperately needed extra firepower in pursuit of a winning goal.
The winning goal came in the 92nd minute when Silva crossed from the right. Jesus’ initial header was saved low down but spilled by Fabianski, but the striker followed up to slot home the loose ball from two yards.
City ought to have added a third goal in the 95th minute when Aguero headed over from a Toure cross, a chance you would have expected him to bury given his stature.
It was not to be and City, who had brought on Fernando Reges for Silva, to hold on to their advantage, were happy and relieved to see out the game.