What did you do on your 21st birthday? It’s probably fair to say that Raheem Sterling will remember his for rather longer than most.
Manuel Pellegrini wasn’t kidding when he said in his post-match press conference that he told Raheem to mark his birthday with two goals and the youngster duly obliged.
While the first goal was a routine close-range finish which showed his predatory instincts, the second was a strike worthy of winning any game, a beautiful, sweeping strike which curled deliciously around Sommer’s despairing dive.
Because of how early Raheem’s top flight career started, it’s easy to forget just how young he still is but his two goals showed the world that the 21-year old is already capable of having a determining impact on the very biggest stage.
Pellegrini stopped short of calling this City’s best night in the UEFA Champions League and that was because of a first-half display which left more questions than answers.
In a knockout context against any side through to the last 16 of the competition, City will struggle to advance further if they concede two away goals as easily as they did against Borussia, so there is still work to do and this was not a perfect night by any means.
The win away at Sevilla was undoubtedly a more complete 90 minute performance but, for now, the Chilean will be satisfied enough by those thrilling final ten minutes which saw the home side score three unanswered goals and return to the kind of form we know this team is capable of.
Wilfried Bony was far from alone in struggling to impose himself on Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium on Saturday afternoon but he served a timely reminder of his many qualities in his vital 25 minute cameo against Borussia Monchengladbach.
The game, and City’s hopes of clinching top spot in Group D, looked like they were fading away into the cold December night even for ten minutes after Wilfried and Jesus Navas were introduced from the bench.
Their impact was not immediate but it was decisive.
First, the Ivorian touched on Gael Clichy’s cross to create Raheem Sterling’s equalising goal, then he demonstrated classic centre forward’s play to hold up the ball and play in the birthday boy for his second before he got one of his own from Aleks Kolarov’s low cross.
With a game coming up against his former side Swansea on Saturday, he’ll be looking to add to his six goals for the season and build on this promising show.
Group D was widely forecast to be the tournament’s “Group of Death” and so it proved right until the bitter end.
Any group containing teams from the continent’s top four leagues will usually result in teams taking points off one another and that’s exactly what happened on the final Match Day as Sevilla did City a solid by defeating Juventus in the night’s other game.
That City managed to win a UEFA Champions League group for the first time in such a competitive, quality group speaks volumes for the progress made in the competition since our first appearance in 2011/12.
At the time of writing with just one night of the group stages to play, we are the only English side through to the Round of 16 and, let’s not forget, we qualified before anyone else with two games to spare.
Pipping Juventus to top spot on the final Match Day was just the cherry on top and we’ll discover just how important that is when the draw for the knockout stages is made on Monday morning...
Joe Hart joked after the game that City will probably face PSG in the knockout stages knowing our luck when it comes to Champions League draws.
A game against the French champions certainly looks like the toughest possible prospect on paper but there are other potentially dangerous ties lying in wait on Monday.
As well as the Parisians, PSV and Benfica are the other two known group runners-up but we could also potentially face one of AS Roma, Bayer Leverkusen, BATE Borisov, Olympiacos, FC Porto, Dynamo Kiev, KAA Gent or Valencia, depending on what happens tonight.
We’ll let you know our potential opponents here on mcfc.co.uk as soon as the games are completed.
But are the Blues really one of the best teams in December and how well do we usually start the next calendar year?
The 4-1 win over Hull City on Tuesday started the month off in fine fashion and, the last 50 December matches in all competitions makes very pleasant reading.
For rounding up to a half-century purposes we’ll start with the last game of 2008 when City drew 2-2 with Blackburn Rovers at the Etihad. The 2009/10 season, City racked up five wins in seven matches, scoring 17 goals and conceding 10.
The 2010/11 season saw the Blues fair even better with six wins in eight matches; drawing one and losing one with 17 goals scored again and just five conceded.
Of course, City secured a first title since 1968 in 2011/12, but, ironically, had a relatively poor December, winning four of seven matches with 12 goals scored and just four shipped.
The 2012/13 campaign didn’t produce a successful title defence, but City did reasonably well with five victories and one draw in nine attempts, scoring 14 goals and conceding 10.
The best December in recent memory came during City’s 2013/14 title triumph as Manuel Pellegrini’s side were in rampant form winning eight out of nine games and drawing the other.
With 26 goals registered and just 12 shipped by the City defence, it was a stellar month that laid the foundation for the two trophies secured in the months ahead.
Last season was yet another stunning final month of the year as the Blues swept all before them, winning eight and drawing one of the nine matches played.
With 19 goals scored and just six conceded, it leaves City with some fairly stunning December facts and figures.
In fact, the last team to be the Blues in December was Sunderland, who secured a traditional 1-0 Stadium of Light victory on Boxing Day 2012 – meaning City have remained unbeaten in their last 19 fixtures played this month.
Overall, the last 50 games have therefore produced 36 victories, seven draws and seven losses with City scoring 117 goals in total and conceding 51 goals with New Year’s Day producing four wins out of five and Boxing Day has seen four wins out of six.
Premier League games have produced an impressive 96 points from a possible 126 with seven out of nine cup matches won.
So is December really a good month for the Blues? Judging by the above it has perhaps been the best month of all for the past six years.
Manchester City v Borussia Monchengladbach
Tuesday 8th December 2015
Kick off – 7.45pm
Following the fantastic 3-1 win away to Sevilla, City are already through to the Round of 16 in the UEFA Champions League.
If you buy a ticket for our last Group Stage home match against Borussia Monchengladbach, you will receive priority access to tickets for the Round of 16 home match ahead of the general sale window.
Priority access will be offered after Cityzens have had an opportunity to buy, and is subject to availability.
Tickets are priced as follows:
†Colin Bell Stand Level 2 and East Stand Level 2 pricing excludes Premium Seats
Tickets for home supporters* will be available online at mcfc.co.uk/tickets, by telephone on +44 (0)161 444 1894 (option 1, option 1, option 2)** and in person at the Ticket Office, on the first floor of the City Store, for supporters that meet the following sales criteria;
- 2015/16 Cityzens with a Gold/Platinum Seasoncard (not registered on the UEFA Competition Cup Scheme) – Monday 9th November at 9am
- Cityzens Members – Tuesday 10th November at 9am
- Non-Cityzens Members* – Wednesday 11th November at 9am
Disabled supporters are unable to purchase tickets online, find out how to buy here.
2015/16 Cityzens with a Gold/Platinum or Premium Seat Seasoncard who are not registered on the UEFA Competition Cup Scheme are kindly reminded that their seasonal seat is not guaranteed for any Cup game played at the Etihad Stadium.
10 Ticket Points will be awarded when you purchase. Platinum and Premium Seats Seasoncard holders will be awarded 20 Ticket Points. 20 City Points will be awarded for attending this match.
*All tickets are located in the home supporter areas of the stadium. Manchester City Football Club reserves the right to implement sales restrictions at any time in the interest of safety. This may result in tickets being relocated or cancelled at any time up to kick-off.
**Tickets purchased over the telephone will be subject to a £2.50 booking fee per ticket. Lines are open 24-hours, 7 days a week. No booking fee payable on tickets purchased online.
CUP SCHEME PAYMENT
All Gold/Platinum Seasoncard holders registered on the 2015/16 season UEFA Competition Cup Scheme will have payment taken from their nominated debit/credit card on Thursday 5th November 2015.
Premium Seat Seasoncard holders will be emailed the price of their seat before payment is taken.
You will receive an email confirmation once payment is processed and your Seasoncard will be activated for this fixture. This also applies to relocated supporters, and it is important that you sit in your alternative seat. There may be times when an impacted seat is returned to the Club. There is no guarantee that this will be offered back to a supporter prior to offering the seat for sale, based on the time that the Club receives the seat and the match taking place
GROUP STAGE SEAT RELOCATION
As a result of UEFA requirements, a number of seats allocated to 2015/16 Platinum and Gold Seasoncard holders who have registered on the UEFA Competition Cup Scheme are not available for home games in this competition. All impacted supporters have either chosen an alternative seat or been allocated a seat by the Club.
PREMIUM SEATS
Premium Seats are available for this fixture. Click here to purchase or find out more. Alternatively, please call +44 (0)161 444 1894 (option 1, option 6) or email: premiumseats@mcfc.co.uk.
HOSPITALITY
Hospitality is also available for this fixture. Click here to purchase or find out more. Alternatively, please call +44 (0)161 444 1894 (option 1, option 2) or email: hospitality@mcfc.co.uk.
You will receive a wide range of benefits including a welcome pack with a personalised card, match ticket priority and £5 off tickets for home Premier League matches, 10% off merchandise and the chance to win money-can’t-buy experiences. Buy a Cityzens Membership online today.
OFFICIAL MATCH TICKET
Entry to the stadium will only be granted on the presentation of a valid ticket purchased from the Club. Find out about the Club’s policy on unofficial tickets here. Supporters Under 14 must be accompanied by an Adult (Over 18) in to the stadium. Further information on age restrictions can be found here. After purchase, please ensure that you upgrade your ticket if it will be used by another supporter in a different age band e.g. if an Under 16 ticket will be used by an Adult.
All tickets and hospitality are sold subject to availability and are issued subject to Manchester City Football Club Limited’s 2015-16 Home Match Terms and Conditions of Sale, 2015-16 Hospitality Terms and Conditions of Sale and any applicable Ground Regulations
The Ticket Office and Supporter Services are open Monday to Saturday, 9am until 5.30pm (closed Sunday & Bank Holidays). Both facilities will open on the day of all scheduled First Team home fixtures and for this match will be open from 9am until 15 minutes after kick off. Please call +44 (0)161 444 1894 (option 1, option 3).
For additional help or assistance use our online FAQ, #mcfchelp. You can also ask a question and keep up to date via our official Supporter Services Twitter account, @MCFCHELP.
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