Tuesday’s triumph at Villarreal extended City’s unbeaten run in all competitions to nine games and they are well placed in fifth position in the group phase of the Champions League, winning two and drawing the other of their three matches.

They are already showing an improvement on their performance last season when they finished in 22nd place to go into the play-offs, where they were knocked out by Real Madrid.

They will face La Liga giants Real on their next European away trip in December and will be lifted by having ended a run of five without victory away from home in the competition.

City’s previous Champions League win outside Manchester came on 1 October 2024 with their 4-0 thrashing of Slovan Bratislava, and they never looked in any trouble against Villarreal.

The early chances set the tempo and scoring two goals in the first half allowed City to control and see out the contest in the second period, showcasing their growing confidence.

Ruthless striker Haaland loves scoring goals against any team but particularly enjoys facing Spanish opposition, having now netted nine goals in as many games against opponents from La Liga.

Guardiola continues to take pleasure in playing Villarreal too as he has never tasted defeat against them in nine meetings.

“[This is] a tough place to come,” said Guardiola. “We played really good. At the end they had one or two chances, but we played a fantastic game.

“It is a good step for us in this tournament.”

One concern will be an apparent injury to midfielder Nico Gonzalez, who has been playing in the absence of Rodri but hobbled off just short of the hour mark.