Aguero 33' (pen), Nasri 65', Negredo 78' Horava 43', Tecl 69'
Dzeko 89'
Pellegrini's progressors show Hart against a vivacious Viktoria Plzen.
Manchester City's impeccable home record almost suffered a frightening blow on Wednesday night as a vibrant Viktoria Plzen side launched a full scale assault inside the Etihad.
A relaxed home crowd, buoyed by their side's progression into the last 16 of the Champions League, were treated to yet another goalscoring flurry on home territory. Seven changes were made to the outfit that savaged Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday afternoon and a shaky defence had their attackers to thank in a below par performance.
Aleksandar Kolarov was one of the many changes introduced by Manuel Pellegrini.
City, captained by Aleksandar Kolarov, made a timid start to proceedings against a side that were yet to achieve a single point in Group D. Sebastian Tecl teased and tantalised a makeshift blue back four, but Joe Hart was on hand to produce a number of impressive saves to keep the visitors out.
On 33 minutes, just seconds after he had squandered a delightful opportunity to put his side 1-0 up, Frantisek Rajtoral handled inside the penalty area to present Sergio Aguero with the chance to score his 20th goal of the season. As expected, the Argentine stepped up confidently and struck a wicked penalty into the bottom corner.
Sergio Aguero scores from the spot to give City the lead.
With nerves calmed, visions of yet another rout appetised the Etihad. However, with nothing to lose and a recent sublime away record to maintain, Pavel Vrba's men decided to put on a show of their own. Just ten minutes later, Tomas Horava unleashed a speculative strike from 25 yards to equalise.
Coming into the tie, all eyes were on the returning Joe Hart and pens were poised to record any mistake that may await him. Nothing happened, and the England No.1 produced a fine distributional and shot stopping display to convince Manuel Pellegrini that he should remain between the sticks in weeks to come.
On half time, Sergio Aguero was withdrawn from play in preparation for Sunday's tie against Swansea and expectedly, the game took a tedious turn. Fortunately, Samir Nasri was still showcasing his sultry skill and on 65 minutes, the Frenchman slotted home from a Navas cross to give the blues the lead once again.
Samir Nasri continued his impressive form on Wednesday night with a goal.
The Czech's continued to crusade along the Etihad despite their most recent setback and replied immediately. Sebastian Tecl capitalised on a jittery Joleon Lescott to finish past Hart and give the visitors yet another equaliser.
Defensive slackness is proving to be a persistent problem on the pitch and the return of Vincent Kompany can't come soon enough. At the other end of the field, however, you're unlikely to find a more potent strikeforce.
Alvaro Negredo's introduction provided the blues with a fearsome threat and the Spaniard continued his fine goalscoring record with a tap in to score City's third of the night. Jesus Navas's testing cross wasn't dealt with and the Beast was able to score possibly the easiest goal of his City career.
Jesus Navas and Alvaro Negredo celebrate City's third of the night.
The persevering Pilsener's finally allowed their heads to drop and Edin Dzeko sealed the win with a powerful header a minute before the final whistle.
Edin Dzeko rises to seal the win for City.
A customary home win for Pellegrini's men gives the blues a chance to top the group with a 3-0 win over Bayern Munich in the Allianz Arena. However, given our away form and our fragility at the back, I think we're all happy to take second.
Player Ratings
Joe Hart 7A confident performance from the man who had a million eyes glaring at him on Wednesday night. Acrobatic stops and delicious distribution were the highlights of his night.
Micah Richards 6Remains slightly uncomfortable when attacked but his attacking intent is becoming more and more potent as he regains fitness.
Martin Demichelis 5Worrying performance from the Argentine who struggled all game with pace and focus.
Joleon Lescott 6Won the physical battles but lost the ones involving speed. At fault for Plzen's second.
Aleksandar Kolarov 6Captained the side but struggled with Plzen's pace down the right.
Samir Nasri 8City's best player of the night always looked like making something happen. Performance was rewarded with a well finished goal.
Fernandino 7Went close to yet another goal, but the Brazilian performed his duties in a typical calm fashion.
Javi Garcia 6Quiet game for the Spaniard who made a number of misplaced passes. Shoddy for a man who went into the game possessing the world's best passing accuracy rate.
James Milner 7As always, he worked hard and ignited a few of City's more promising moves.
Sergio Aguero 7
45 minutes of agility, pace and tenacity. Oh and yes, another goal.
Edin Dzeko 5.5His attitude was appalling and although he scored, he was largely anonymous.
Substitutes
Navas 7 - Looks to be settling in and assisted two goals.
Yaya Toure 6 - Added power to the midfield.
Negredo 6 - Yet another goal to add to the tally.
