HE created them, and belatedly, he unlocked them.

Mark November 1 as a seminal night in Manchester City history, a Champions League evening they finally got the better of Barcelona, who had won seven in a row against English opponents, and did so by bettering them at their own game.

It is not just a famous night because of the Pep Guardiola-Barcelona narrative. The manner in which they defeated the La Liga champions, on a night when their Group C hopes were under pressure, could be a turning point for the club altogether.

After being left embarrassed at Camp Nou in a 4-0 loss, Guardiola re-instated Sergio Aguero to his XI and charged his side with the challenge of taking it to Barcelona.

It worked.

Guardiola didn’t over celebrate against the club that he is synonymous with, but within, he would have been in raptures at not just the result, but the execution his side displayed.

In a game that was pulsating entertainment and packed with heart-in-mouth defending and breathless counter-attacking, City gambled, were brave and were handsomely rewarded.

Lionel Messi’s mesmerizingly good goal on the counter attack was against the run of play – City had already been denied a penalty to Raheem Sterling – but exposed a naïve, helter skelter City opening.

Messi's 80m counter-attack

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Although Barcelona had the hosts on the hook in the minutes after that, the result was fair based on the rest of the night’s performance as City galvanised.

City pressed at such maniacal intensity that not even Barcelona could cope. Without the smarts of Andres Iniesta, Jordi Alba and Gerard Pique, they wilted under pressure. The moving parts of City’s well drilled unit outweighed their Catalan rivals, with Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez isolated for much of the second-half.

Penalty or dive by Sterling?

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In truth, City had multiple chances to put the game to bed before Ilkay Gundogan got his second, and his side’s third goal, and you feared the longer they didn’t find that two-goal cushion, then Barca would sneak in on the counter attack – as they almost did when Andre Gomes rattled the crossbar after a John Stones blunder on halfway.

Without his usual sparring partners in midfield, Sergi Busquets was targeted by Guardiola and bullied by City’s midfield as they cut out his usually metronomic and simple options in the middle of the park. If Fernandinho hadn’t succumbed to injury, he’d still be chasing the Spaniard now.

Guardiola has hinted that he expects Aguero to comply with the work ethic without the ball that he demands, and boy, did he prove a point at the Etihad.

The Argentine had a brilliant battle with compatriot Javier Mascherano in a display that was a great reminder of his athleticism and speed when he is fully fit.

Guardiola said: “It was just one game that I didn’t play him. I said before the game, and after the game, to us, without Sergio we cannot achieve our target. I’m so happy for him because he was so happy.”

Behind him, Messrs Sterling, Silva, Gundogan and De Bruyne ran Barcelona’s vulnerable defence ragged with extraordinary movement and pace.

Sterling, in particular, was a key protagonist with the width he kept, while Pablo Zabaleta and Aleksandar Kolarov’s contributions cannot be underestimated, particularly as they pushed forward into midfield and provided a distraction for Barca’s midfield to free up space for Sterling and co to surge forward.

In blistering forward on the counter, City took a more direct approach at times.

De Bruyne rockets City ahead

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Once Guardiola moved De Bruyne into a central role, he had the game on his string. Some of his work on the edge of the box was top class, so it was no surprise to see the Belgian deliver the key moment with his free-kick that put City ahead.

“Considering the short time we’ve been together, against the best team in the world, our victory today is so important. Now we have one more game to win,” Guardiola said.

“Our [equalising] goal changed everything for our mood, the players realised the bad moment was over.

“Our players know that during 90 minutes you have bad phases, and we knew that time was over. It was a final for us, not for them.

“I think we showed many, many good things, I am so happy for the players, and they didn’t deserve to go six winless.

“We got to know each other better tonight, and we’re lucky that if we get through, we won’t get Barca in the next round!”

He added: “Our performance in Barcelona 11 v 11 was better than our first 38 mins here. We saw the best team in the world.

“We tried high pressing, and we were in real trouble. Barca had the chance to score the second and the game was done.”

But it wasn’t, and City enjoyed a seminal night.