Sunderland vs Manchester City: Sergio Aguero scores only goal as Man City keep pace with Leicester

Sunderland 0 Manchester City 1

Sergio Aguero winces after opening the scoring (GETTY IMAGES)

There will be nights like this for Pep Guardiola now, stuck in a regional outpost of his new country, against a set of players fighting for their future.

It remains to be seen whether he will have to face a trip to the Stadium of Light, or indeed Sam Allardyce, no natural exponent of the tiki taka football that the blue half of Manchester will embrace next season.

Sunderland have found fight but their cutting edge last night was blunted by two outstanding moments from Joe Hart.

On the stroke of half-time the Manchester City goalkeeper produced a breathtaking save, diving full stretch to deny Jermain Defoe. Late in the second half, he had to do it again, this time with added height, to tip away Billy Jones’s rising drive.

They were the kind of saves that can win titles, and given the breakneck, relentless and surprisingly consistent level of Leicester’s attack on the summit, they were huge moments.

It had not looked such a difficult evening at its outset as City took control and took an early lead through Sergio Aguero, who finished with predatory aplomb.

It looked like it would be a platform, but there has to be a consequence of a four-pronged attack for silverware that will provide an enthralling finish to Manuel Pellegrini’s brief stay at City. Perhaps it will be in fatigue.

There is already a Premier League title banked from his first season and a League Cup triumph, against last night’s opponents. It is easy to forget Pellegrini’s achievement against the backdrop of Guardiola’s understandably heralded arrival.

It is sometimes lost that his players fight for him too and they needed it in the closing stages, where the more powerful side Allardyce is building rallied in chase of an equaliser. It did not come and they head to Liverpool on Saturday in desperate need of points.

City’s lead came early and it was during a period when they were well on top and creating chances. Only four minutes had passed when Gael Clichy crossed from the left and Kelechi Iheanacho, who retained his place following his FA Cup hat-trick at Aston Villa, saw his header from a tight angle saved by Vito Mannone.

Sunderland did not need to help their title-chasing opponents, but in the ninth minute, Yann M’Vila slipped a misplaced pass to Aguero and the Argentinian moved the ball to the side of John O’Shea before smashing a superb shot from 30 yards that flew narrowly wide of the corner of the Sunderland goal.

The lead was not far away, however, and it came from the right foot of the same player. Sunderland failed to clear their lines and when Jesus Navas’s deflected shot reached Aguero, eight yards from goal, he cleverly flicked his finish past Mannone. Jones, the Sunderland right-back who had failed to cut out the cross, raked his left boot down the calf of Aguero as he shot his side ahead.

The forward, who had scored his 12th goal in his last 10 Premier League games, required attention for the injury and the length of the wound was visible, as was a ruined football sock. However, it did not deter him or his team, who retained control until the closing stages of the first half.

Before that Aguero almost doubled the lead and his night’s tally. Just before the half-hour he was played in by Iheanacho and from the edge of the Sunderland penalty area, curled a shot that clipped the top of Mannone’s goal.

There didn’t seem a way out at times for Sunderland, but there came a late, spirited rally as the half came to a close.

From a left-wing free-kick, they should have equalised. Jeremain Lens’s set-piece was perfect for Lamine Kone, making his home debut, but from eight yards out, he headed wide.

City were then indebted to the first brilliant save from Hart who had to dive full stretch to his left to deny Defoe’s low shot with a finger-tip save. From the rebound, Jones charged in from the right, but struck the post.

Hart had to turn peacekeeper just past the hour to split his irate defender Otamendi and the Sunderland forward Defoe who had lifted his leading arm into the face of the City man as he jumped for a header. The pair then went face to face, indicative of a second half that was scrappy for long spells

Aguero shot tamely at Mannone moments before the incident and Lee Cattermole spooned a shot wildly over the bar at the other end.

Once more, however, City were indebted to their goalkeeper, who, in the 78th minute, produced his second world-class save of the evening. Pellegrini’s team had not cleared their lines when the ball broke to Jones, around 25 yards from goal, and from an angle, he struck a fine, rising drive that Hart could only stop at full stretch.

From the resulting corner, he first punched clear from Wahbi Khazri and then could only watch as O’Shea hooked his shot over the bar from around eight yards out.