Manchester City banks top spot with late win over unfortunate Feyenoord

Feyenoord threatened to snatch Manchester City's unbeaten start to the campaign in Tuesday's meeting at the Etihad Stadium, but Raheem Sterling eventually stole all the spoils with an 88th-minute winner.

The 1-0 win meant City clinched top spot in Group F, although the club's seeded status heading into the Champions League Round of 16 was assured anyway thanks to Napoli's 3-0 defeat of Shakhtar Donetsk.

The lasting takeaway for Pep Guardiola from this scraped victory was how several peripheral players failed to make an impression in their respective starts. City is still waiting for Bernardo Silva to rehash his Monaco form since his summer move, and Yaya Toure wasn't able to compensate for the natural fitness and intelligence of Fernandinho, who rested on the bench throughout the tie. By City's standards, the tempo was sluggish.

The introductions of teenagers Phil Foden and Brahim Diaz, who was brought on after Sterling lifted the ball over Brad Jones, were rapturously received by the home crowd. Both are among the earliest products from the City Football Academy, and are tipped for bright futures in the game. Diaz perhaps outshone debutant Foden despite a shorter cameo, putting together some nice touches before referee Ivan Kruzliak sounded the final whistle.

"They kept really solid, we were slow on the ball. They dug in deep and stayed in the game as long as possible," Sterling told BBC Sport post-match.

"It's always good to score but it's more important to win, even if it's ugly sometimes."

Guardiola stays in the north for the weekend's Premier League fixtures when his side visits newly promoted Huddersfield Town Sunday.