with Manchester City on Tuesday and left the Premier League
champions' European hopes in tatters in the process.
City manager Manuel Pellegrini had described the Group E clash
as a must-win game, but Natkho's late strike denied the visitors
at an Arena Khimki without supporters due to UefA sanctions
following issues of racism and crowd trouble.
Goals from Sergio Aguero and James Milner had looked set to
prove the difference for City in the first match of their double-
header against the Russian side.
The English champions moved ahead after 29 minutes when the
in-form Aguero continued his goalscoring streak with a simple
finish, before Milner added a second seven minutes prior to the
break.
With City on course for a first European win since last
December, Seydou Doumbia pulled one back for Leonid
Slutsky's side and, as the home side increased the pressure, they
were rewarded when a sloppy challenge from Aleksandar
Kolarov on Ahmed Musa resulted in a spot-kick being awarded
with four minutes remaining.
Natkho converted to rescue his side's first point of the campaig
and ensure City missed the chance to apply pressure to Bayern
Munich and Roma.
Musa scored twice in CSKA's 6-0 win over Kuban Krasnodar at
the weekend and almost opened the scoring on Tuesday with a
fizzed effort that veered wide of Joe Hart's left-hand post.
Former Manchester United man Zoran Tosic was next to
threaten 10 minutes in as City, having made five changes from
Saturday's 4-1 win over Spurs, looked somewhat disjointed
early on.
Pablo Zabaleta - among the players who returned to the starting
XI - shot wide after expertly controlling Yaya Toure's lofted ball
but, in an opening half-hour of few clear-cut chances, it was
Aguero who again provided the breakthrough for City.
Silva slipped in Dzeko, whose square ball laid on Aguero's eight
goal in his last five outings.
The Argentina international then played a key role as City
doubled their advantage, his wayward strike - following
Zabaleta's knockdown - finding Milner at the far post, who
turned home to double the visitors' lead.
Milner subsequently struck the post with the goal at his mercy,
having seen Dzeko's appeals for a penalty turned down followin
a tangle with Sergei Ignashevich.
CSKA's day looked set to worsen when Doumbia appeared to
pick up an injury, but the Ivorian then gave the hosts hope by
turning home Musa's cross from the right five minutes after the
hour.
City's failure to put the game to bed was then punished when
Musa went down under a challenge from Kolarov, giving
Natkho the opportunity to equalise with a nerveless penalty
that beat Hart as the goalkeeper dived to his left.
CSKA were therefore able to get off the mark at the third
attempt and inflict a heavy blow to their opponents' hopes of
reaching the last 16.
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless handheld from Glo Mobile.
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