Phil Foden created two and scored another as holders Manchester City came from 2-0 down to preserve their unbeaten Champions League run with a 3-2 win over RB Leipzig.
Erling Haaland also broke another record as City produced an emphatic response to Lois Openda’s first-half double at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday.
Substitute Julian Alvarez came off the bench to wrap up the fightback and secure top spot in Group G for Pep Guardiola’s formidable side.
Foden sparked the turnaround when he teed up Haaland early in the second half for the strike that saw the Norwegian become the fastest player to reach 40 goals in the competition, in just 35 appearances.
The England midfielder added a sublime second himself before further great footwork presented Alvarez with City’s third.
Both teams had gone into the game knowing their places in the last 16 were secure but, aside from the final group positions, there were also matters of pride to play for.
City were looking to protect an English record 18-game unbeaten run in European competition while Leipzig were keen to erase the memory of their 7-0 thrashing at the same venue last season.
The Bundesliga side started strongly and were keen to test City’s back-up goalkeeper Stefan Ortega.
City had an early let-off when Xavi Simons curled a low effort wide.
It was a warning that was not heeded as a simple long ball from goalkeeper Janis Blaswich caught out the home defence. Manuel Akanji clumsily allowed the ball to bounce in attempting to nudge Openda out of the way and paid the price as the Belgium forward broke free.
Openda, who also scored in Leipzig’s home clash with City last month, showed great composure as he raced into the area and buried a low shot past Ortega.
City almost found a quick equaliser as Ruben Dias headed over and Rico Lewis then did superbly to control a pass and beat a defender but he also cleared the crossbar.
City were exposed again by another ball from deep just after the half-hour. This time Dias was unable to cut out the pass and was beaten by Openda by the touchline.
Again Openda showed his pace and could not be stopped as he cut inside and rifled past Ortega.
Haaland tried to rescue the situation but blazed well over and then headed tamely at Blaswich.
Akanji’s poor showing continued as he caught David Raum with a late challenge but he escaped a booking.
City showed more determination after the break and pulled one back in the 54th minute, just seconds after Jeremy Doku and Alvarez were introduced in a double change for Jack Grealish and Kyle Walker.
Foden split the defence with a clever pass and Haaland raced through to finish powerfully.
Foden took centre stage to net the equaliser himself on 70 minutes, taking a sublime touch to take out a defender on the edge of the box and then cleverly rolling past Blaswich.
Leipzig were not done and on-loan Liverpool forward Fabio Carvalho thought he had put the visitors back ahead immediately after coming off the bench but his effort was ruled out for offside.
It was a moment they were to rue as Foden spun inside the area from a Doku pass and squared for Alvarez to tuck home three minutes from time.
Ederson injury 'doesn't look good', says Guardiola
Pep Guardiola conceded Ederson's injury "doesn't look good" as Manchester City were forced to wait on the severity of the issue.
Ederson had to be taken off at half-time during City's 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest on Sunday, a victory that took them back to within a point of Premier League leaders Arsenal with a game in hand.
The Brazil international needed treatment on an apparent shoulder injury after a collision with Forest defender Willy Boly.
Ederson was seen with his arm in a sling after full-time at the City Ground.
And Guardiola said: "It doesn't look good. We will see [on Monday] with the doctor."
Stefan Ortega again stepped up in Ederson's absence, with City's number two having performed well when called upon this campaign.
Ortega has made seven Premier League appearances this season, making 16 saves from 22 shots on target faced, giving him a save percentage of 72.7.
Ederson, meanwhile, has a save percentage of 67.1, keeping out 53 of the 79 attempts on target he has faced.
Ortega has a slightly better goals prevented figure of 1.6 compared to Ederson's 1.0.
Recruitment crucial if Slot gets Liverpool job, warns Brands
Arne Slot must only settle for the best in the transfer market if he succeeds Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool manager at the end of the season.
That is the view of PSV president Marcel Brands, who has warned Slot against taking several Eredivisie players with him in comments which might be interpreted as a dig at Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag.
Liverpool are reportedly close to reaching an agreement with Feyenoord to appoint Slot, who led the Rotterdam giants to just their second league title this century in 2022-23.
Should Slot get the job, he will be taking over at what could be a time of great upheaval at Anfield.
Star forward Mohamed Salah could follow Klopp through the exit door as he enters the final 12 months of his contract, with renewed interest from the Saudi Pro League likely.
The Egyptian was involved in a public spat with Klopp during Saturday's 2-2 draw with West Ham and has only scored three Premier League goals since going to the Africa Cup of Nations in January.
Asked how Slot should approach taking over during a time of transition, Brands told Goedemorgen Eredivisie: "Don't focus blindly on signing five Dutch players.
"He has to look very carefully at what he needs with his style of football, and only settle for top players."
Brands' comments come as Slot's fellow Dutchman Ten Hag continues to attract fierce criticism amid an underwhelming second campaign at Old Trafford, with Eredivisie recruits Antony, Tyrell Malacia and Lisandro Martinez having limited impacts this term.
Brands has warned Slot the pressure awaiting him at Anfield will match that Ten Hag has faced at United, saying: "Slot will be working at one of the biggest clubs in England.
"You have to realise that. Liverpool have supporters from all over the world, and the pressure is always there.
"Just like Manchester United, they really are the biggest clubs in England, but it is a fantastic challenge."
Nuno encouraged by Forest's attitude and commitment, despite Man City defeat
Nuno Espirito Santo believes Nottingham Forest will "achieve what we want" by replicating the attitude demonstrated during their defeat by Manchester City.
Forest went down 2-0 against their title-chasing opponents at the City Ground, and remain just a point clear of the relegation zone with three games remaining.
Despite the defeat, the hosts produced a spirited performance against Pep Guardiola's side, while registering 14 shots on goal compared to 11 from the Citizens - meaning they had had more shots in both meetings this season.
Forest face already relegated Sheffield United, Chelsea and fellow strugglers Burnley in their final three games, and Nuno has seen enough to be confident of securing the Reds' Premier League status for another year.
"We played a good game, were compact, organised and had chances," he told Sky Sports. "We did a good job regarding how hard it is to play against Manchester City, and the players gave it a big go.
"We are disappointed with the result, but the encouragement comes from the way we work, how committed we are, and what we have ahead of us. This is more important.
"We stay positive, and we go for the next three games. With this attitude, we will achieve what we want."
Defender Moussa Niakhate echoes his manager's thoughts, adding: "We had three big chances in the first half, but we didn't score. That was the difference.
"Everybody is working hard. We can be proud. If we perform like this in the next three games, we'll stay up."
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