But that doesn't tell the whole story. City were good in phases but created their own problems. Fernandinho was at fault for the opening goal, Claudio Bravo was sent off on his return to Barcelona for handling the ball outside the area and Ilkay Gundogan's stray pass led to the third. By the time Jeremy Mathieu was sent off to even the teams at 10 men each with 20 minutes to play, the game was already up.
When Guardiola made his first Camp Nou return, with Bayern in 2014, he caught people out with a back three although in truth, the only people taken aback were his own players. His starting lineup on his second return also featured an element of surprise. Sergio Aguero was left on the bench, Guardiola explained, because he wanted more bodies in midfield.