Manchester City somehow made a routine afternoon utterly chaotic before Phil Foden stepped forward like a man destined for centre stage. The England star struck twice and delivered a stoppage time winner that sent the Etihad into pure delirium as City edged past a Leeds side that had no right to be anywhere near a result.
This was supposed to be simple. It took City less than a minute to open the scoring, Foden guiding home Matheus Nunes cross with the kind of calm that makes the hard things look easy. From that moment the hosts flowed forward with complete authority. Josko Gvardiol powered in a second midway through the half and Leeds looked like they were bracing themselves for a cricket score. Daniel Farke could barely watch. His men could not keep the ball and every clearance came straight back at them.
Only Lucas Perri kept the score respectable. The Leeds keeper threw himself around the goalmouth with stubborn defiance and even found time to complain about being blocked off as Gvardiol scored. It felt like a brief moment of rebellion in a match drifting towards a training exercise.
Then came the twist. Farke rolled the dice at half time and sent on Dominic Calvert Lewin. Suddenly Leeds had a focal point and suddenly City had problems. Calvert Lewin immediately began bullying the home defence and when Nunes accidentally nudged the ball into his path the striker pounced. The away end erupted in disbelief.
City began to wobble and Leeds sensed something they have rarely felt in recent weeks. Hope. When Gvardiol clattered into Calvert Lewin moments later the referee pointed to the spot. Lukas Nmecha saw his first effort saved but made no mistake with the retake. From nowhere Leeds were level and the Etihad had gone from party mode to full panic.
Erling Haaland hunted goal number one hundred in the Premier League but this was not his afternoon. The Leeds defence kept him unusually quiet and frustration spread through the crowd. Every failed attack added to the tension. Every Leeds clearance invited groans.
Just when City seemed set to drop precious points in the title chase their quietest superstar took charge. Foden collected the ball inside a packed penalty area in stoppage time and with cold precision threaded a left foot shot into the bottom corner. One touch and one moment of brilliance. Relief washed over the stadium.
City moved up to second and trimmed the gap to leaders Arsenal yet questions remain. They struggled badly once Leeds adopted a more direct approach and their composure vanished far too easily. But that is a discussion for another day. This one belonged to Phil Foden who proved again that when City lose their way he is the man who brings them home.