Bayern Munich 1-0 Manchester City: Boateng breaks Hart's resistance

The England goalkeeper was finally beaten late on having kept out Pep Guardiola's side for the majority of the 90 minutes as City suffered defeat in their group stage opener

Jerome Boateng scored a dramatic late winner as Bayern Munich kicked off their Champions League campaign with a 1-0 victory over Manchester City.



City goalkeeper Joe Hart frustrated the Bundesliga champions for long periods of the Group E opener at the Allianz Arena on Wednesday, as Bayern looked set to start the group stages with a draw.

Thomas Muller ought to have put the Bavarian giants in front inside a minute when he rounded Hart but could only fire wide when he finally got his shot away.

Manuel Pellegrini could only watch on from the stands as he served a touchline ban, with his assistant Ruben Cousillas taking charge on the sidelines, and he must have had his head in his hands as former City defender Boateng's half-volley deflected past Hart at the death.

MATCH VIEW

By Keeghann Sinanan "Bayern edge out the victory that they probably deserved in the end, though they have the most unlikely source to thank for the three points. Jerome Boateng's late wondergoal, his first ever in the Champions League, did the damage. City, defending on the edge for so long, were finally beaten and in truth, did not threaten enough in the final third. Not the start that Manuel Pellegrini would have wanted."

The Premier League champions produced a stirring fightback to win at Bayern last season, but were left heartbroken this time around.

Mehdi Benatia was handed his Bayern debut, while fellow defender Rafinha made his first appearance of the season after recovering from an ankle injury.

Arjen Robben was only deemed fit enough to start on the bench after recovering from a knee problem.

Edin Dzeko, Yaya Toure, and Samir Nasri all returned to the City starting line-up as Sergio Aguero, Frank Lampard and James Milner dropped to the bench, while Bacary Sagna replaced the suspended Pablo Zabaleta.

Guardiola stressed the importance of Bayern starting their European campaign with a win to set the tone for the group and they should have been in front with less than a minute gone.