Michael Olise scored twice as Bayern Munich, away in Italy, thrashed Atalanta 6-1 in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League round of 16 tie at the Gewiss Stadium.
Nigeria broke the deadlock in the 36th minute.
Freiburg opened the scoring in just 12 minutes through Japanese international Yuito Suzuki, who finished a perfect close-range effort.
City and Chelsea were outside the top four spots before the game, and three points for either side was a direct ticket back into Champions League positions.
Manchester City’s recent woes continued on Sunday evening after Pep Guardiola’s side recorded their sixth consecutive defeats in the Premier League.
Mohamed Salah’s 29th-minute penalty put the hosts in front against the run of play.
Maresca played down talk of Chelsea putting behind them a disappointing couple of seasons when they finished sixth and 12th in the Premier League.
Mateo Kovačić’s powerful strike sealed the deal for City.
The victory took Chelsea’s tally to 54 points, tied with Manchester United, who face Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Monday night.
Chelsea’s first-half efforts paid off when Raheem Sterling, formerly of City, found the far corner with a clinical finish three minutes before halftime.
