Pep Guardiola and two Man City stars' worst-ever nights and why Sporting trip offers redemption

When explaining his team’s relentless form last week, Pep Guardiola said Manchester City’s biggest opponent was themselves.

“I said many times - with all respect to our opponents - we play against us, this is the target,” he explained. “We have to perform for ourselves as high as possible.”

This is a mindset that has City on course for a fourth Premier League title in five seasons and in prime form heading into Tuesday’s Champions League last-16 encounter with Sporting.

However, on the Blues’ previous visit to Estadio Jose Alvalade, they were not so much their biggest opponents as their own worst enemies.

Lyon were deserved 3-1 winners in the 2020 Champions League quarter-final - a nightmare night when everything went wrong for City.

When they return to the scene of the crime tonight, three members of the travelling party, in particular, might feel they have some demons to slay.

Ederson

The inimitable Brazilian goalkeeper is arguably Guardiola’s best and most important signing since joining City but he had the mother of all shockers against Lyon.

Ederson ambled out of his goal when Karl Toko Ekambi sprung City's flimsy offside trap and was caught in no man's land as Maxwel Cornet steered home the opener from outside the area.

City’s No.1 then got plenty of his leg behind Moussa Dembele’s shot but could not keep it out when Lyon restored their lead in the 79th minute.

Ederson was most culpable shortly afterwards, spilling Houssem Aouar's shot for Dembele to score his second and settle the contest. However, in the meantime, something else dreadful had occurred...

Raheem Sterling

Sterling had enjoyed the most prolific season of his career in 2019/20, with 31 goals in all competitions. He had also been one of the few