Pep's injury obviously hurts the most - City almost slip at Sheffield as Rodri struck late for the win

And you still think a gaffer's physical presence is not that important in modern football?

Well, then you should have patiently analysed the Premier League fixture between recently promoted minnows Sheffield United and the reigning champions Manchester City. Without their boss Pep Guardiola, the Cityzens struggled for a substantial part of the tie at Bramall Lane before finally putting United's hopes finally to sleep.

Led by Pep's assistant Juanma Lillo, the visitors confronted the rivals with two strikers up front - Julian Alvarez and Erling Haaland.

Despite that, City lacked pace and ideas in the final third as Sheffield's defensive wall stood bravely.

It was close to tearing down near the half-time interval, but Haaland hit the woodwork after the hosts conceded a penalty for handball in the box.

The Norwegian striker kept underachieving in the second half, as the Blades' keeper denied his close-range effort when probably the entire stadium saw the ball going into the back of the net.

And then, when many reporters had already started writing their reports with Haaland as the tragic hero in the centre of it, he scored one of his trademark headers. Grealish's cross was superb, as usual, and the robust striker thumped the ball on the far post for 1-0.

At that moment, probably 99% would surrender and fall to despair, but not the Blades. The resilient opponents managed to bounce back and tie the game at one thanks to Bogle's exquisite shot following Kyle Walker's dreadful error in the box.

With less than ten minutes left on the clock, the giants made one last push for the winning, hoping a bit of luck would smile at them. And it did, with a little help from a remarkable Rodri.

The Spaniards pounced on Walker's cross as Fodden couldn't manage to get a hold of it a second or two earlier. Strong, powerful shot into the far corner and late salvation for Pep-less City.

PREMIER LEAGUE - MATCHDAY 3

Friday

Chelsea - Luton 3-0 (1-0)

/Sterling 17, 68, Jackson 75/

Saturday

Bournemouth - Tottenham 0-2 (0-1)

/Maddison 17, Kulusevski 63/

Arsenal - Fulham 2-2 (0-1)

/Saka 70 pen, Nketiah 72 - Pereira 1, Palhinha 87/

Brentford - Crystal Palace 1-1 (1-0)

/Schade 18 - Andersen 76/

Everton - Wolves 0-1 (0-0)

/Kalajdzic 87/

Man Utd - Nottingham Forest 3-2 (1-2)

/Eriksen 17, Casemiro 52, Bruno 76 pen - Awoniyi 1, Boly 4/

Brighton - West Ham 1-3 (0-1)

/Gross 81 - Ward-Prowse 19, Bowen 58, Antonio 63/

Sunday

Burnley - Aston Villa 1-3 (0-2)

/Foster 46 - Cash 8, 20, Diaby 61/

Sheffield Utd - Man City 1-2 (0-0)

/Bogle 81 - Haaland 63, Rodri 88/

18:30 (2.30) Newcastle (3.70) Liverpool (3.15)

***odds are subject to change