The last-minute equaliser from Norgaard left Man City stunned!

Christian Norgaard's late header put an end to Man City's comeback as the Premier League champions blew a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 at Brentford, further shattering the team's foundations.

Before Brentford's late comeback, Pep Guardiola's team had taken a 2-0 lead with less than ten minutes left.

Before their late collapse once more exposed how far they have gone this season, City had displayed glimmers of their former selves as captain Kevin De Bruyne gave a captain's performance and a nod to the great maestro of all time with a flawless cross for Phil Foden's close-range opener.

Twelve minutes after Foden's first goal, they appeared to have eliminated Brentford's threat when he scored second from inside the six-yard box to complete his own comeback. Had Savinho's attempt not struck a post and Erling Haaland not headed directly at Mark Flekken, they may have.

However, their defensive weakness, which has led to them reaching agreements for Vitor Reis of Palmeiras and Abdukodir Khusanov of Lens, quickly returned to the fore to let Brentford back into the match.

Mads Roerslev's cross found its way to Yoane Wissa, who cleverly turned and scored his 11th Premier League goal of the year after Nathan Ake missed his header to block it eight minutes from time.

When Norgaard beat Manuel Akanji to Keane Lewis-Potter's delivery in extra time, Brentford surged forward, lifting the roof off the Gtech Community Stadium and once again leaving the Premier League winners from the previous season with a bloody nose. It was to be a repeat performance.

Analysis: Once more, the city walls are collapsing.

This was ultimately a character game. Manchester City didn't have it, but Brentford did.

Man City should have won the game after taking a 2-0 lead. They lacked the mental toughness, but they had the chances to win.

It's games like these that make Pep Guardiola realise how much more he needs to do than just replace Rodri.

As Phil Foden reached the back of the net and Kevin De Bruyne worked the strings, there had been fleeting flashes of the City of old. This is not how the City of old, or even the City of September, would have crumbled.

Guardiola retorted that although his team had never conceded 18 shots, they had also never produced as many against the Bees. The majority of those occurred prior to City's first goal, but they were overtaken once more by the initial surge of energy from Yoane Wissa's comeback goal.

Although their weak midfield still invites pressure, Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji can win headers in their own penalty area. They are neither the only ones playing within themselves, nor are they the only ones responsible for the goals.

Any notion that City may be returning was refuted by the underlying statistics, and now their brittle mindset has validated it.

Pep Guardiola, the head coach of Manchester City, said:

 "We don't have players in our own box to defend lead."

"What I didn't see today was that we made poor choices in the last third when we had the option to run. We could run with them and were winning long balls, but we made poor choices.

"I enjoy Brentford's style of play; we produced a lot today and have visited this place numerous times, but they have had more opportunities than we have.

"At 2-0 we had to close it out, but we don't have a specific player to defend a result in the box - we have to do it with the ball, create and control in the final third."

Frank: This is the first time we have faced city toe to toe.

"I simply expressed my immense happiness and pride in the performance to the guys inside. I believe this is the first game in four years that we compete head-to-head with a top-three team for the entire ninety minutes.

"The ability and mindset to do that, the bravery throughout the game, and of course coming back from a 2-0 deficit is a tremendous mentality," the statement reads. "I think Manchester City, Liverpool, and Arsenal have been the finest three clubs in the four years we have been in the Premier League.

"I'm overjoyed. The feeling is slightly better if you get something from it, but I would still have been pleased with the performance."