MIDDLESBROUGH 2, MANCHESTER CITY 2
- Pep Guardiola tries three at the back again at Middlesbrough
- Gabriel Jesus starts up front as one of five changes and almost converts an early Sergio Aguero cross
- Alvaro Negredo scores one and makes one for Calum Chambers as Boro take the lead twice
- Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus level things up twice late on
The race for a Champions League spot is still active after Manchester City had to come from behind twice to draw 2-2 with relegation threatened Middlesbrough.
A penalty by Sergio Aguero and a late strike by Gabriel Jesus cancelled out goals by ex-City striker Alvaro Negredo and Calum Chambers with the latter earning City a point just five minutes from time as Boro started to believe they had snatched an unlikely victory against the Blues.
In any event, the draw couple with Chelsea’s win at Everton meant that City could not mathematically win the league this season – ensuring that Pep Guardiola would end a season without silverware for the first time in his managerial career.
With this season effectively written off, all that remained for Guardiola was to secure at least a fourth place finish to qualify for next season’s Champions League.
But with just two wins in eight Premier League games even that is looking a risky assumption but the likes of Manchester United, Liverpool and even Arsenal have also stumbled in recent weeks.
Guardiola had opted to experiment with a three man defence to accomodate Gabriel Jesus up front with Sergio Aguero.
Willy Caballero replaced the injured Claudio Bravo while there were also starts for Jesus Navas, Gael Clichy, and Gabriel Jesus, plus a first Premier League start for Aleix Garcia as City’s team was rotated after Thursday’s derby draw against Manchester United.
Also stepping aside were Pablo Zabaleta, Yaya Toure, Raheem Sterling, and Leroy Sane as Guardiola looked to rest players who had looked tired recently.
Two up front for Manchester City as Pep Guardiola plays three at the back
Despite a tantalising front partnership, the new 3-4-1-2 formation looked alien to City in the first half as they failed to test Middlesbrough while their hosts sought the goal they desperately needed in a very physical first half.
If Guardiola needed any reminding that some of his players are not up to the tactical systems that he wants to implement he only needs to review this game which saw his nominal wing-backs Clichy and Jesus Navas appear bereft of attacking ideas while offering little protection to the trio of centre halves Aleksandar Kolarov, Nicolas Otamendi and Vincent Kompany.
City’s haphazard defending was breached after 38 minutes when Stewart Downing’s driving run split a poor City defence shortly before the break.
Downing squared the ball and it fell for Alvaro Negredo whose curling shot went in off the post.
Boro tried to cling on to their lead after the break, with Guardiola abandoning his experimental formation to bring on Sterling and Sane to chase the equaliser.
This duly came after almost 70 minutes of toil when Marten de Roon was harshly adjudged to have tripped Sane.
Sergio Aguero’s penalty levelled the scores but Boro pulled ahead again after some more poor City defending allowed Calum Chambers to give them the lead again in the 77th minute after a battling Negredo’s cross reached him.
The home fans thought they had won three precious points from the most unlikely of sources before Aguero chipped a cross up and Jesus headed in a late equaliser five minutes from time.