Pep Guardiola hailed Aymeric Laporte the "best left centre-back in the world" after his assured return for Manchester City.
He said: "He's the best left-centre back in the world when he's fit for me. Imagine the best teams in the world lose their best central defenders, we missed him a lot.
"He is a specialist with his left foot, he's strong in the air with personality. We knew he could not play 90 minutes, we said to be ready before the game, but Eric (Garcia) is an incredible guy too.
"I'm glad to put 65-70 minutes in his legs, and that first step is good hopefully and he can help us until the end of the season. He is so important to the way we have to play, his character and mentality too. He has all the attributes.