Manchester City maintained their grip on fourth place in the Premier League as Samir Nasri returned from injury to score the winner against West Brom.
City had to come from behind after Stephane Sessegnon beat Joe Hart at his near post just six minutes in.
Sessegnon then brought down Aleksandar Kolarov in the area to allow Sergio Aguero to equalise from the spot.
Nasri tapped into an empty net with 25 minutes remaining to put City four points above rivals Manchester United.
United can close that gap if they beat Tottenham on Sunday, but City will also be keeping an eye on leaders Leicester City, who could reinstate a 15-point advantage over Manuel Pellegrini’s side with victory over Stoke.
City with one eye on PSG
The prospect of reaching a first ever Champions League semi-final by beating Paris St-Germain at Etihad Stadium on Tuesday is more pressing for City, and the visit of the French side hung very much over Pellegrini’s team selection and the performance as a whole.
The Chilean, who will be replaced by Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola in the summer, realises he can still leave an indelible mark on the club by taking them to European glory, and made five changes from the 2-2 draw in the first leg of their quarter-final with PSG last week.
Top-scorer Aguero started and took his goal tally for the season to 23, but hobbled off near the end of the contest after taking a set of studs to the calf from Albion’s Craig Gardner, although the Argentinian did not look to be seriously hurt.
The hosts, with Nasri making a Premier League start for the first time since September after a thigh injury, took a while to get to grips with the reshuffle from midweek and looked flat without the twin creative sparks of Kevin de Bruyne and David Silva.
Wilfried Bony was rarely an influence up front and it was not until the hour mark and the introduction of De Bruyne and Yaya Toure – a welcome sight to City fans after a three-week layoff – that City came alive.
Belgian De Bruyne was integral to the winning goal, with his clever ball inside from the right flank allowing Jesus Navas to roll across to Aguero, whose blocked effort fell to the unmarked Nasri for a simple finish.
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Source: BBC