Dynamo Kiev 1-3 Man City: Sergio Aguero and David Silva score in win - 5 things we learned

     

                   

Manchester City took control of their Champions League last 16 tie with Dynamo Kiev with a 3-1 win in Ukraine.
Sergio Aguero fired the visitors ahead before Raheem Sterling crossed for David Silva to tap home the second.

Sergei Rebrov's side improved after the break. They pulled one back through Vitaliy Buyalskyi and only the heroics of Joe Hart maintained the visitors' slender advantage.
But Yaya Toure scored a superb late goal from distance to ensure Manuel Pellegrini will still be confident of progressing to the quarter-finals in three weeks' time.
Here are five things we learned:

                                Opener: Aguero celebrates scoring the first goal with Yaya Toure  

1. Pellegrini's FA Cup snub justified

Manuel Pellegrini came in for considerable criticism for his team selection in City's FA Cup fifth-round tie at Chelsea on Sunday.
The Chilean made no secret of the fact he would field a young team if forced to play the game on Sunday, and was as good as his word.
Chelsea ran riot, thrashing City's kids 5-1, but Pellegrini's decision has been more than justified this evening.
Disrespectful to the FA Cup? Possibly - but the financial rewards up for grabs in Europe - and City's previous performances in the Champions League - meant the trip to Kiev had to take priority.
Fast forward 72 hours from the Stamford Bridge humbling - and the smile on Pellegrini's face is as wide as the chasm between Chelsea's old guard and City's starlets.

                

David Silva scores the second goal for Manchester City

2. Aguero such a rarity

For Arsenal fans who watched a flat-footed Olivier Giroud struggle to make any impact in the Champions League last night, the idea of having a striker as ruthless as Aguero must seem like a pipe dream.
And it's not like the Gunners couldn't afford a world class striker - they just can't find one. For all Man City's wealth, they should be grateful to have a forward as exceptional, as clinical as the Argentine is.
He is a rare talent. We already knew that, but his stats - 16 goals in his last 17 Champions League starts - emphasise just how rare he is.

                 

Deficit halved: Vitaliy Buyalsky celebrates scoring the first goal for Dynamo Kiev

3. Cut above Yarmolenko needs to move

Linked with a move away from Ukraine for some time now, surely the winger’s time at Dynamo is almost up. If not, for the good of his career, it needs to be.
There comes a time when a big fish in a small pond needs to head elsewhere, to really show just how strong he can be; this summer is the time for the 26-year-old to head elsewhere and prove himself.
Following the defections of Alex Teixeira and Yevhen Konoplyanka in the last nine months, Yarmolenko is left as the shining light in the Ukrainian league. But does a light really shine if no one sees it?
Blessed with an imposing physique, good technique, a change of pace and a sledgehammer left foot, he’s a fullbacks nightmare. Comparisons with Cristiano Ronaldo aren’t without merit.
But against Europe’s elite, where they know that he’s the only man in this Dynamo side who can do something out of the ordinary, he’s invariably double marked whenever he receives possession. In a better side, with teammates more on his wavelength, his creativity would flourish.
Certainly he’ll prove costly. But there’s more than enough, throughout his career with club and country and even on a night where Dynamo were so patently outclassed, to suggest it would be money well spent.

               

Challenge: Raheem Sterling in action with Andriy Yarmolenko

4. Otamendi shows his class

After arriving at the Etihad for big money last summer, Nicolas Otamendi has done little to justify his huge price tag.
But the Argentine centre-half put in one of his better displays display for City in the bitter cold of the Olympiastadion.
He was unfortunate to see the Dynamo goal come off his hip, but that apart the ex-Valencia man impressed.
Seemingly emboldened by having a fitter Vincent Kompany alongside him, Otamendi was happy to press, engaging Dynamo forwards in and around the halfway line, defending on the front foot. More than once he nicked the ball off a striker’s toes, while he was largely dominant in the air.

                  

Clash: Toure in action with Denys Garmash and Lukasz Teodorczyk

5. City are as good as through

Just as Barcelona's stars did on Tuesday, City's players will tell themselves they can't relax, that this tie isn't over. The reality, unfortunately for Arsenal and Dynamo Kiev, is that it effectively is.
Of course, Kiev could go to the Eithad, score at least three goals and win. But previous trips to England (where they have never won) show that is unlikely.
They needed to take a lead to Manchester, they haven't done that. City have to take the second leg seriously, but a bet against them would be foolhardy.

                    

Home comforts: Dynamo Kiev's supporters

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