Manchester City suffered a humiliating 3-1 defeat at the hands of Norwegian underdogs Bodø/Glimt on Tuesday evening, dealing a significant blow to their hopes of securing automatic qualification to the Champions League knockout rounds.
The Premier League giants travelled to the Arctic Circle as overwhelming favourites but were comprehensively outplayed by the hosts at Aspmyra Stadion.
Danish forward Kasper Høgh netted twice in devastating fashion during the opening period, while Jens Petter Hauge added a spectacular third after the interval.
Rayan Cherki pulled one back for Pep Guardiola's side, but captain Rodri's dismissal ended any realistic prospect of salvaging a result.
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Høgh opened the scoring in the 22nd minute, meeting Ole Blomberg's delivery with a precise header at the far post after the hosts launched a swift counter-attack.
The Norwegian side struck again just 120 seconds later, with Høgh doubling his tally courtesy of another Blomberg assist.
This time the Danish striker found himself unmarked in the centre of the penalty area and fired a clinical right-footed finish into the top corner.
City had started brightly, with Cherki forcing goalkeeper Nikita Haikin into an early save and Max Alleyne heading narrowly wide from a Phil Foden corner.
Manchester City suffered a humiliating 3-1 defeat at the hands of Norwegian underdogs Bodø/Glimt on Tuesday evening
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However, Bodø/Glimt's ruthless efficiency on the break left Guardiola's men shell-shocked at the interval.
The second half brought no respite for the visitors as Hauge produced a moment of brilliance in the 58th minute.
The winger curled an unstoppable strike from outside the box into the top corner following another rapid counter-attack.
Cherki offered City a lifeline two minutes later, drilling a low shot past Haikin from the edge of the area after being teed up by Nico O'Reilly.
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The result leaves City in fourth position in the 36-team table with 13 points
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Yet any hopes of a dramatic fightback were extinguished almost immediately.
Rodri received two yellow cards in quick succession, leaving the 2023 European champions to play out the final half-hour with 10 men.
The result leaves City in fourth position in the 36-team table with 13 points.
Their standing could slip once the remaining matchday seven fixtures are completed.
Bodø/Glimt claimed their maiden Champions League victory and sit 26th
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Bodø/Glimt, meanwhile, claimed their maiden Champions League victory and sit 26th, two points adrift of the playoff qualification places.
Guardiola's squad now faces a must-win encounter against Galatasaray at the Etihad Stadium on January 28 in their final group phase fixture if they are to avoid a two-legged playoff tie next month.
Before that, City host Wolves in the Premier League on Saturday.
They look to recover from consecutive defeats following their 2-0 loss to Manchester United at the weekend.
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