Manchester City kept its hopes of quadruple alive after coming back from two goals down to win 3-2 at Swansea City in the FA Cup quarterfinals thanks to Sergio Aguero's controversial late header.
Pep Guardiola's men looked to be heading out of the competition at the hands of second-tier opposition, but three goals in the final 21 minutes saw City come back from the brink, as Aguero – who appeared to be offside – nodded in the late clincher.
Although the Premier League champion initially looked bright, a confident Matt Grimes penalty put Swansea in the ascendancy and it doubled its advantage with an exceptionally worked Bersant Celina goal against his former club.
The visitor upped the ante after the break and pulled one back through Bernardo Silva, before an Aguero penalty went in off goalkeeper Kristoffer Nordfeldt.
And, just when Swansea looked to have held on to force extra-time, Aguero completed the comeback two minutes from the end to send City to Wembley.
City made a fine start and went close three times in the first 15 minutes, but Swansea capitalised soon after – Grimes coolly dispatching a penalty after Fabian Delph tripped Connor Roberts.
It was 2-0 before the half-hour mark as Swansea brilliantly carved through City and Nathan Dyer teed up Celina, who found the top-right corner with a curling effort from just inside the box.
City was back in it in the 69th minute, when substitute Aguero saw a shot come back off Jay Fulton's face and the Argentina striker subsequently teed up Silva for a fine outside-of-the-foot finish.
Guardiola's side was level 12 minutes from the end, with Aguero's penalty – after Cameron Carter-Vickers was adjudged to have tripped Raheem Sterling – coming back off the post and going in off the unlucky Nordfeldt.
With City piling on the pressure, there was an air of inevitability about the winner, which arrived when the prolific Aguero met Silva's cross with a well-placed header into the bottom-left corner.
Comments
SHARE