TEMPO.CO, Manchester - Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola burst onto the field with his fists clenched and leapt into the air. Benjamin Mendy, currently out with a long-term knee injury, hobbled down the touchline in a desperate bid to get a selfie with teammate and match-winner Raheem Sterling.
Ninety meters away, Southampton's players were on their backs in their own area, distraught at conceding in the sixth minute of injury time.
In a wild finale that sparked an extraordinary explosion of joy from City's players and coaching staff, Sterling curled home a last-gasp goal with virtually the last kick of the game to give the Premier League leaders a 2-1 victory over Southampton on Wednesday.
It needed something special to upstage Wayne Rooney's hat-trick goal from his own half for Everton on an incident-packed night in England's top flight.
Sterling managed it.
"It was an astonishing end to the game," said Guardiola, who was told to calm down by the referee amid his frenzied celebrations. "It means a lot."
Manchester City re-established its eight-point lead over second-place Manchester United thanks to a 12th straight league win. Late goals used to be United's forte during the glory days under Alex Ferguson, but now it is City mastering the art of scoring the last-gasp winners.
In particular Sterling, who grabbed an 84th-minute winner against Huddersfield on Sunday and also a winner in the seventh minute of injury time against Bournemouth in August.
"I could not control it," Guardiola said of his behavior after Sterling's goal, which included a bizarre confrontation with Nathan Redmond as the Southampton winger walked off the field.
"We want to win the league but you have to celebrate when you score in the last breath like that."
In the night's other highlight, Rooney demonstrated his enduring class by meeting a goalkeeper clearance with a superbly struck first-time shot from just inside his own half that arrowed into an empty net. It was his, and Everton's, third goal in a 4-0 win over West Ham.
There were also victories for Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool.
AP