'No one thought we stood a chance here': Chelsea revel in stunning Man City with late equaliser
Chelsea interim manager Calum McFarlane with Reece James after their side's draw with Manchester City. Pic: Martin Rickett/PA Wire.
Enzo Fernandez struck in the fourth minute of injury-time to inflict devastating damage on Manchester City's title hopes and leave interim Chelsea boss Calum McFarlane dancing in delight on the Etihad touchline.
The Argentine World Cup winner gave McFarlane a night to remember when he scrambled home Malo Gusto's right-wing cross with the home side digging in to protect the first-half lead given to them by Tijjani Reijnders' thumping first-half strike.
It left City trailing Premier League leaders Arsenal by six points after successive draws - and Guardiola must now cope with an injury crisis going into Wednesday night's home clash with Brighton after defenders Josko Gvardiol and Ruben Dias joined a casualty list that already includes John Stones and Nico Gonzalez.
McFarlane expects to be back in charge of the London club's Under-21 team for their game against Benfica on Wednesday night after Liam Rosenior flew into London to finalise talks about succeeding Enzo Maresca.
But the former City academy coach was dragged onto the pitch by captain Reece James to take the acclaim of the travelling fans at the final whistle to soak in a moment he will never forget.
McFarlane said: "It was a great experience. It was a great game to be a part of. I'm really proud of the players and how they performed, especially in the second half.
"I think the most impressive thing was probably the players. One-nil down at the Etihad, interim manager, players falling ill on the day of the game, all the change.
"For them to regroup and take that information on and execute it, speaks volumes about the characters we have at this club. Young players in those moments, they may crumble, but I thought they were exceptional second half."
Guardiola was in shock after seeing his team blow the chance to at least apply some pressure to Arsenal.
Tijjani Reijnders' thumping first-half strike looked like giving City the lift-off they were looking for in the second half of the season.
It was the least the home side deserved for the way they dominated against a visiting team that was weakened by the loss of several players through illness, injury and suspension.
When asked about how he hopes the title race can still shape up, the City manager sniped: "I don't have a crystal ball. I won't speak about it. I only think about Brighton on Wednesday.
"I thought our performance was outstanding. But we couldn't take our chances to score a second, third and fourth goal. We missed the goal after arriving in the six-yard box so many times."
Guardiola can expect to be without Josko Gvardiol and Ruben Dias after the central defensive pair both limped off in the second half to join a casualty list that already includes John Stones and Nico Gonzalez.
At least it appears that Rodri is over the fitness issues that saw him sidelined for three months by a hamstring strain damaged as he strived for his best form after returning from the torn cruciate that kept him out for most of last season.
The 2024 Ballon d'Or winner was imperious until he ran out of steam towards the end. That was when City looked at their most vulnerable and Chelsea too full advantage.
Phil Foden dragged a decent chance wide and Erling Haaland sent a curling left-footer against the inside of Filip Jorgensen's left-hand post before Reijnders struck three minutes before the break.
Rayan Cherki's pass to find Haaland was blocked but the Dutchman cleverly rolled his studs over the ball to work some extra space to the side of Benoit Badiashile before thrashing a shot high past Jorgensen from just inside the box. It was his fifth goal of the season.
McFarlane sent on Andrey Santos for Estevao at the break and almost immediately Pedro Neto lifted a fine chance over after Cole Palmer finally found some space to provide a positive pass.
City's appeals for a penalty were dismissed when Cherki tumbled under Reece James' challenge before McFarlane sent on Rory Delap and Jorrel Hato just after the hour.
Delap fired an angled shot into Gianluigi Donnarumma's chest before then sparking a flare-up by pushing substitute Abdukodir Khusanov into the pitch-side advertising boards.
Then, in the dying seconds, Melo's low cross was missed by both Palmer and Delap. But not Fernandez as he arrived at the far post.
Chelsea's fans had sporadically chanted the name of Roman Abramovich, their former owner who himself hardly had a reputation for being loyal to even his most successful managers.
Now they were in the mood to celebrate and McFarlane was rushed on to the pitch to take his bow. He said: "I didn't want to do that if I'm honest. But Reece asked me to.
"I think it's a good moment to maybe speak about the players. This is not an easy job. There's a lot of change that's gone on. Enzo Maresca was incredibly successful with this group. Some of them were shocked by the decision.
"No one thought we stood a chance here. We've had everything against us, but this group's shown that when their back's against the wall, they've got the talent and character to be successful.
"So I'm really, really proud of those players, of the whole group, sorry. I'm really proud of the whole group."
Donnarumma 6; Matheus Nunes 6, Dias 6 (Ake 81, 5), Gvardiol 6 (Khuisanov 51, 5), O'Reilly 8; Bernardo Silva 6, Rodri 7, Reijnders 7 (Doku 70, 6); Cherki 7, Haaland 6, Foden 6.
Jorgensen 7; Acheampong 6 (Hato 62, 5), Chalobah 6, Badiashile 6, Gusto 7; James 7, Fernandez 6; Estevao 5 (Santos 45, 6), Palmer 5, Pedro Neto 5; Joao Pedro 5 (Delap 62, 5).
Michael Oliver.
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