United were 2-0 down at half-time, a scoreline that seriously flattered them. But then Paul Pogba scored two terrific goals in the space of 97 seconds, and Chris Smalling volleyed the winner. The end of the match was a furious free-for-all, in which a number of players might have been sent off. It was wonderful.

City will still win the league but it’s been a miserable week for them, reminiscent of those desperate few days that cost Arsenal the Treble in 2004. Who knows: in time we might look back on this as a turning point in Jose Mourinho’s spell as United manager. Thanks for your company, goodnight!

90+4 min Pogba wins a corner for United. United waste a bit of time by bringing on Victor Lindelof for Herrera.

90+3 min Jesus is booked for a hack at Herrera. His head has completely gone.

90+2 min Kompany is booked for loss of noggin.

90+1 min Danilo is booked for fouling Rashford. They are five minutes of added time.

90 min: Sterling hits the post! A right-wing corner was volleyed towards goal by Otamendi and came to Sterling in the six-yard box. He adjusted his feet as quickly as possible but could only divert the ball on the inside of the post. This is unreal stuff.

89 min: GREAT SAVE FROM DE GEA! Sane’s cross was headed towards goal from close range by Aguero, and De Gea flew to his left to tip it over with his right hand. It’s yet another brilliant stop for his highlights reel.

88 min Danilo plays a stunning through pass down the right for Sterling, whose attempted cutback goes behind for a corner. Nothing comes of the corner but City keep the ball until De Gea comes confidently to claim Delph’s cross.

85 min City have been quite brattish in the last 10 minutes, losing their rag every time a free-kick is given against them. In their defence, they should have had a penalty (and probably a red card for Young), so you can understand why they think the world is against them.

85 min Another change for United. Scott McTominay replaces Jesse Lingard.

84 min This is football.

83 min “It’s one flashpoint away from all going off here,” says Gary Neville. De Bruyne’s deflected cross looks set to dribble towards Aguero when Young appears to whack it clear.

82 min Marcus Rashford replaces Alexis Sanchez.

81 min Pogba takes a yellow card by fouling Otamendi, and there’s another frank exchange of views by the players on both sides. This is great stuff now, full of aggro.

80 min Fernandinho was booked for a nasty kick at Lingard. He might have walked too.

79 min Replays suggest that not only was it a clear penalty but also probably a red card for Young, who went in high and with both feet off the floor. Aguero has now been booked for dissent.

79 min There’s a proper row going on now, with the players from both sides shoving each other. Fernandinho started it with a foul that got him booked, though I didn’t see what happened as I was frantically typing about the penalty appeal.

78 min How is that not a penalty! City broke from a United free-kick and De Bruyne slid the ball to Aguero, who seemed to be clearly taken out by Young. Martin Atkinson was having none of it.

77 min It’s getting lively, with Sane penalised for a shove on Lingard.

76 min Sergio Aguero, who is on 199 Manchester City goals, replaces Ilkay Gundogan. This match could easily end up 4-3 to City or 5-2 to United.

74 min Replays suggest Smalling’s shoulder was probably just offside. Oh VAR where art thou.

73 min Marcus Rashford was going to come on at 2-2 but there’s no sign of him.

72 min A double substitution for City: De Bruyne and Jesuis replace David Silva, who has been wonderful, and Bernardo Silva.

71 min If City win this 4-3, it’ll be a million times more rewarding than a 4-0 cakewalk.

70 min Smalling may have been fractionally offside; it was very close. What is certain is that it was a great ball in from Sanchez and a really deft finish.

67 min Those two Pogba goals came in just 97 seconds. That’s the kind of thing that can change a career, and make livebloggers look very stupid.

65 min Gundogan clips a free-kick over the bar. City are starting to come back into the game after going AWOL for 10 minutes.

64 min “Rob, are you as jelly legged (or finger) as I am?” says Don Mihsill. “I don’t know if I’m happy, surprised, confused, confounded or all of the above and other things I haven’t found a way to articulate yet. Is this what they call football? Is this why we’re like little kids when we watch it?”

I’m a professional, Don. Frankly it’s bang out of order to suggest I would allow emotion to influGET THE EFFING THING IN THE BOX!!!

63 min Sterling is booked for a foul on Lukaku.

61 min Sanchez’s pass almost puts Lukaku through on goal. This match is so open now, with both teams chasing a famous victory.

60 min Lingard belts a good effort not far wide from 25 yards. This is wonderful stuff.

58 min A clipped straight pass from Fernandinho clears the United defence and is taken down beautifully on the run by David Silva, but his cross is too close to De Gea. This is pulsating stuff now.

57 min “Pogba’s a great effing player,” says Niall Mullen. “Youse are all effing idiots.”

56 min What a crazy twist. Pogba made two outstanding late runs into the box for the goals. The first finish was routine but the second was terrific. It was a fine pass from Sanchez as well.

52 min “Mourinho-type players?” says Andrew Price. “I think they’ve all retired.”

Ahem.

51 min Sterling turns smoothly around Bailly in the area and tees up Gundogan, whose sidefooted shot clips the outside of the post!

50 min “Matches like this confuse me,” says Matt Dony. “I may have mentioned once or twice that I’m a Liverpool fan, but if I’m honest, I don’t absolutely hate United. (Arsenal and Chelsea make me much angrier.) I don’t like them, naturally. But I definitely don’t hate them. Jose is a good addition to the league, as long as he’s not managing Liverpool. And, I really respect City, and the way they have built up to this. They spent the first few Big Money years progressively buying better players and built a team relatively slowly, compared to the insane purchasing policy under Abramovich. They’ve also ploughed an absolute fortune into the academy and facilities. BUT I really, really hate Barca, and no one represents their self-righteousness quite like Pep. He’s a genius, but I do not like him. Having said that, it will be enormously, fantastically entertaining to see them win the title against United. But, will that give them the confidence to score a hatful on Tuesday? Argh, my head hurts.”

49 min Pogba’s left-footed shot from 22 yards is comfortably saved by the plunging Ederson.

48 min Lukaku moves onto Sanchez’s pass to win a corner for United. It flashes off the head of Kompany at the near post and right across the face of goal.

47 min “I have to disagree,” says Francis Mead. “I think Pogba is a totally a United player - perhaps not so much a Mourinho player though.”

He’s got the swagger of a United player but not much else.

46 min Peep peep! City are 45 minutes away from winning the title with six matches to spare. Six matches!

Craig Bellamy the pundit He’s really good.

“It’s worrying for Pogba’s career trajectory that he’s clearly trying very hard to prove how good he is today,” says Matt Loten, “and only succeeding in proving exactly why so many people are not convinced that he’s really all that.”

I’ll be surprised if he’s at United next season. He’s not a Mourinho player or a United player.

“Hi Rob,” says Peter Oh. “The snot-laser farmer’s blow technique displayed by Herrera in response to his yellow card is the most impressive thing I’ve seen United do so far in this match.”

A timely tribute to the legendary Brian McClair.

45+1 min “Think I might go and do the grocery shopping,” says Adam Roberts.

I’ve got a £93.2m busted flush you can have if you like.

45 min Lukaku hasn’t had a kick - until now. He has a hack at Kompany and is booked.

44 min Though I expected a City win, I thought it would be closer than this. City have been good to very good; United have been hideous.

43 min City miss another great chance! Gundogan runs off Pogba, who could not give one solitary toss, and heads Fernandinho’s driven pass straight at De Gea.

42 min Sky have just shown a replay of Kompany’s goal in this match six years ago. Smalling was marking him then too.

41 min Sane scoots past Bailly and cuts the ball back towards Bernardo Silva. It’s behind him but comes to Sterling, whose left-footed shot from 15 yards is easily saved by De Gea. That wasn’t nearly as good a chance as the first two.

40 min The olés have started from the City fans. It’s not even half-time. This is turning into a humiliation for United.

37 min Herrera is booked for a hack at Fernandinho. Born of frustration.

39 min City have not been at their best and they should probably be 4-0 up. It makes you realise how well Jose Mourinho has done to get United into second place because this is a desperately ordinary side.

36 min Another great chance for Sterling! Again he was put clear by David Silva, and again he clipped over the bar. United are being ripped to pieces.

33 min Sterling misses a glorious chance to make it 3-0, slapping over the bar from David Silva’s through pass. United are all over the place.

30 min “It was a fairly typical piece of Smalling defending,” says Adam Roberts. “More interested in wrestling his man than playing the ball.”

29 min Sane is lucky not to be booked for a snide foul on Lingard.

26 min Kompany’s face was a picture of joyous disbelief after that goal. He was smiling so broadly that he almost broke his face. That was such a special moment.

25 min Valencia, forced to use left foot for the first time since 2011, shanks a clearance onto the roof of his own net. From which...

22 min City have the first big chance. Sterling, off balance and in the process of being flattened on the edge of the box, plays a clever little pass through to Bernardo Silva, whose stabbed close-range shot is blocked by the legs of De Gea. Silva was also off balance and under pressure from Matic, so it was a slightly trickier chance than it first looked.

21 min Sterling plays a square pass to David Silva, who drives well wide from 25 yards. We haven’t had a shot on target at either end.

18 min It’s all pretty cagey. So far the decision to use Bernardo Silva as a false nine hasn’t really worked; he’s struggling to get involved in the game.

15 min As things stand, City would go to Wembley next week needing a win against Spurs to clinch the title.

14 min Kompany, in his own area, plays a dreadful pass that is intercepted by the lively Herrera. Fernandinho comes across to concede a corner. Nothing comes of it.

13 min Pogba is fouled on the left wing by Danilo. Sanchez’s free-kick is poor and easily claimed by Ederson.

12 min A fine low cross from Danilo is excellently intercepted by Herrera, with David Silva waiting behind him.

11 min United are struggling to keep the ball. City are not.

9 min Sterling gets the wrong side of Young, who somehow gets away with wrestling him to the floor just outside the area. That should have been a foul and a yellow card.

8 min City are starting to dominate possession, with David Silva looking especially bright.

5 min City have a big appeal for a penalty turned down by Martin Atkinson. Fernandino slid a superb pass to find David Silva in space on the left. He fizzed a low cross to the far post, where Young slipped and handled the ball. It wasn’t deliberate but it denied Sterling a simple chance.

3 min Nothing to report so far. United are pressing City fairly high up the pitch, though they did at Anfield before retreating as the match progressed.

2 min It’s Bernardo Silva rather than Raheem Sterling who is playing as a false nine.

1 min After a minute’s applause for the former United midfielder Ray Wilkins, Jesse Lingard gets the match under way.

The players are out and it’s time for business. One way or another, this is going to be immense.

“I think an underappreciated part of the Pogba story is Guardiola’s steel, and the bit of spite too, to sit on it then roll it out the day before the game,” says Christopher Faherty. “I approve, even though we’re on the end of it. Qualities needed in a manager at the top level.”

Jose Mourinho speaks about Paul Pogba apparently being offered to Manchester City in January “Guardiola says that, the agent says otherwise, so one of them is telling the truth. I’m not interested in which one is a liar.”

“If that’s a strong City team - missing the world’s second-most expensive defender, Mr Shoo-In for PFA Player of the Year, and our top goalscorer (or indeed any recognised striker) - then I’m an aardvark,” grunts Ewen Atkinson. “Pep is missing the best chance to reward the fans today with what they want most, which won’t be the first bad decision he’s made in selection in the last few days.”

Has Pep taken City as far as he can?

An opportunity like this makes you realise how lucky Arsenal fans have been. Their team has won the title at Spurs (twice), Liverpool and Manchester United. Some memories there. Won’t somebody think of the grandchildren!

Pre-match reading

That’s a surprisingly strong City team, even though Kevin De Bruyne, Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus are on the bench. If I was Pep - at home, on Championship Manager 2001-02, in my underpants - I’d have rested most of my best XI.