With the headlines ahead of this one dominated by the shock departure of Enzo Maresca as Chelsea manager, it was little surprise to see stand-in boss Calum McFarlane employing caution in the early moments.
That subdued City, and even spawned the first chance of the game when Estevao’s shot from the centre of the area was blocked by Josko Gvardiol.
The hosts’ fortunes improved from there, though, and Phil Foden missed a pair of chances before Bernardo Silva curled over from a promising position.
It was nearly half-time by the time Erling Haaland got into the game, but he went closest yet for City in smashing a left-footed, curling strike against the post.
And that proved to be the catalyst, with Tijjani Reijnders receiving it just a couple of minutes later, finding space for a shot and blasting into the roof of Filip Jorgensen’s net from a tight angle.
Chelsea went on the hunt to turn the tide immediately after the break, and Pedro Neto really should have levelled things up when he scooped over from the centre of the area after a rapid counter-attack.
Determined to get his name on the scoresheet for the first time in three matches, Haaland went on the rampage, but couldn’t beat Benoit Badiashile with his eventual shot.
There were more opportunities for City as the half progressed, but arguably the clearest one went Chelsea’s way when Liam Delap stung the gloves of Gianluigi Donnarumma from a tight angle.
Knocks to both Gvardiol and Ruben Dias forced late changes in the City defence, giving the visitors some renewed hope, and they were finally rewarded in the fourth minute of stoppage time.
Malo Gusto roared down the right and put in a teasing cross which was not dealt with by the City defence, and Enzo Fernandez was lurking at the far post to scramble in.
City subsequently slip six points behind Arsenal, level with Aston Villa, breaking an eight-match winning league run at this venue.
That late equaliser will have delighted McFarlane in the first match of his interim tenure, and shows that Chelsea have the tools for a successful end to the season once a replacement for Maresca is identified.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Tijjani Reijnders (Manchester City)
