Manchester City 3-1 Sevilla: Rico Lewis marks his first UCL start with a finish to spark comeback

Rico Lewis had threatened to do this against Bayern Munich on Manchester City’s tour in America a few months ago. There he jinked by three Bayern defenders at lightning pace in a very tight space, only to thunder into the near post.

It had everyone inside Green Bay’s historic Lambeau Field asking quite who this explosive 17-year-old was. City’s supporters are certainly well aware of him now.

A proper right back, Lewis was ready to make his mark in the final third throughout. He poured forward and looked adept at moving inside, just as Pep Guardiola asks. He looks like a full back in the image of his manager.

Manchester City beat Sevilla 3-1 in their Champions League clash on Wednesday evening after a ropey start to the game 

Sevilla took the lead in the 31st minute of the game after Rafa Mir (above) found the back of the net for the visitors 

However, Rico Lewis managed to get Manchester City back into the game by scoring the 52nd minute of the game

The evening had been pretty positive before the goal but there came some icing nevertheless. He waited to make his run as Julian Alvarez’s persistence turned over possession and off he went, Alvarez slipping the defender in. Just as in the States, Lewis went for the near post. This time, a swish rather than a clink.

Gobsmacked, he held a hand over his mouth. What a wonderful moment his 52nd minute equaliser was for him, his watching parents in a box, and the club’s academy. Lewis has been in their system since he was seven and his full professional debut was certainly one to remember.

Phil Foden was one of the first to congratulate him, and that felt somewhat significant given Lewis is only around 170 days older than the academy’s poster boy was when he made his first start. Things have turned out all right for Foden since.

As a result, the 17-year-old became Manchester City’s youngest ever scorer in UEFA Champions League history

Phil Foden (R) was one of the first to congratulate Lewis (L), and that felt somewhat significant given Lewis is only about 170 days older than Foden was when he made his first start

Julian Alvarez scored Manchester City’s second goal during the UEFA Champions League group G match on Wednesday 

The statistics kept on coming. The youngest player ever to score on their first Champions League start, breaking a record previously held by Karim Benzema, and is now only the fifth Englishman to play in the competition before turning 18.

Guardiola does not offer minutes for nothing and so Lewis, it seems, has a bright future in front of him. And his performance engineered some interest into a game that looked rather unappealing beforehand, given City had already topped the group.

Sevilla did too, in fairness, going ahead through Rafa Mir – only for City to eventually ease past them comfortably. Lewis was even afforded a standing ovation later in the game, shortly after toying with Alex Telles in one corner of the Etihad Stadium. The referee told him to go off on the far side, giving Lewis even longer to sheepishly accept the chants of his name and warm applause.

‘An enormous talent,’ said Ruben Dias.

Guardiola was equally effusive. ‘What a goal,’ he said. ‘He’s a fantastic player, so intelligent. He understands everything. I didn’t know him before we went to America and then we saw it in the training sessions. With good players you realise in two minutes, you can see it. We saw this guy has something special.’

City came through unscathed – no suspensions ahead of the last 16 – although were defensively shaky. Dias was inside 30 seconds, giving cheap possession away which resulted in Mir scooping over Stefan Ortega’s bar. The German goalkeeper then stopped smartly when Mir burnt Sergio Gomez for pace. Mir had another chance, heading wide with Gomez left gawping at a deep cross.

Mir, who did not manage a single goal during spells at Wolves and Nottingham Forest in the Championship, did finally bag one – gift wrapped by the hosts. Gomez again stood inside his own penalty area wondering what that moving object – an Isco cross – was and Dias got nowhere near it either, so Mir planted a free header into Ortega’s far corner just after the half hour.

City had dominated much of the game. Ortega’s nice tribute to Ederson, charging out of his box to chest down and play straight into midfield – blissfully ignorant of any nearby Sevilla attacker – started a move that saw Foden go close. Cole Palmer almost put them ahead earlier, sweeping over Alvarez’s cut back, with Erling Haaland watching from the posh seats.

This actually felt like an occasion designed to breathe life into Riyad Mahrez’s season, with the Algerian adding a third with seven minutes left after Alvarez had put City in front. Guardiola will hope that stirs something inside Mahrez now.

Riyad Mahrez (right) scored the third and final goal of the game to cap the scoreline off at 3-1 in favour of Man City 

The Spanish giants endured a difficult Champions League campaign and will return to the Europa League

Cole Palmer (right) was handed a start by Pep Guardiola but was replaced by midfield maestro Kevin De Bruyne (left) 

Once Lewis struck, City purred. Alvarez notched the second with 17 minutes remaining and thoroughly deserved to do so too. It owed so much to substitute Kevin De Bruyne, whose sumptuous pass, in an alley Sevilla’s defenders simply could not guard, found Alvarez. And then he showed composure, skipping beyond Yassine Bounou and clipping into the roof of the net.

‘Julian is a special guy,’ Guardiola said. ‘The work ethic, like Gabriel (Jesus). He was patient, found the space, and got a reward. His two assists were exceptional.’

Alvarez’s pressing manufactured Mahrez’s strike on the Argentine’s most impressive display of the season. Yet he was overshadowed by someone else. As understudy to Haaland, at least he is used to that.

Relive the action through Sportsmail’s live blog for the Champions League group stage clash between Manchester City and Sevilla.