A Man of the Match performance from Kevin De Bruyne was just enough to send Man City past plucky Shakhtar Donetsk 2-0 at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday.
David Silva assisted De Bruyne’s second half goal, and Bernardo Silva set up Raheem Sterling for the second just before time.
Alone in first, City will host Napoli on Oct. 17 while Shakhtar is off to Feyenoord.
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Kevin De Bruyne set Sergio Aguero up for a chance that was well-covered by Shakhtar backstop Andriy Pyatov.
De Bruyne had the best chance of the first half, working himself into a “Surely” position only to miss his mark with a shot and leave the match scoreless.
At the other end, Ederson made an excellent save on Marlos.
Fittingly, De Bruyne helped set himself up for the opener, winning the ball and working a 1-2 with David Silva to finish with style.
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Leroy Sane won a penalty for City, but Sergio Aguero’s tame effort was saved. At the other end, John Stones was directing traffic when a ball hit his arm. No call from the officials.
12 - Kevin De Bruyne has been directly involved in 12 goals in his last 12 games for Man City in all comps (3 goals, 9 assists). Class. pic.twitter.com/apa6HHHwRF
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 26, 2017