A nervy Kevin Muscat sweated out the eight minutes of stoppage time on the sidelines before his men could celebrate the three points.

Man of the match, Kosta Barbarouses, suggested his coach needed a wardrobe change in the tense final minutes as City pushed for an equaliser. 

"I think he needs a new shirt as well – it was pretty translucent at the end," Barbarouses told Fox Sports before saying Muscat would be "delighted" with the win.

The New Zealand international opened the scoring (13') and Leroy Geroge retook the lead (62') after Bruno Fornaroli, in first start of the season, equalised from the penalty spot (54').

Victory had a chance to extend the margin at the death.

With just seconds on the clock, and City goalkeeper Dean Bouzanis up the attacking end, James Troisi had a gaping net at his mercy on the counter but still managed to skew his effort wide, in one that won't make the highlights reel. 

The result is third-placed City's third straight loss and their first back-to-back defeat at AAMI Park in two years.

Barbarouses looked like he'd scored the fastest goal in Melbourne Derby history when he netted in 50 seconds only for the VAR to scrub it out due to an offside Besart Berisha.

But the Albanian atoned with a killer reverse pass to Barbarouses, who celebrated the opener with a cheeky signal to the ref upstairs.

"It just goes to show how hungry we were," Barbarouses said. "Bes was eager to get onto that ball and to be fair it was probably right that it was disallowed.

"I wanted to make up for that, and he actually made up for it when he slipped me in for the goal."

The striker praised his teammates for keeping the momentum on the domestic front despite being in the thick of an AFC Champions League campaign.

"I’m very proud of the boys tonight," he added. "It keeps on getting busier and busier our schedule, but the boys have been fantastic.

"There's still plenty of football to be played and that’s going to give us a massive lift."

City starlet Daniel Arzani, in his first derby start, was stretchered off with a freakish cramp in the 69th minute, before worrying signs for Victory's George, who limped from the pitch with a hamstring injury 15 minutes later.

And it wouldn't be a derby without a sideline melee. Scott Jamieson and Thomas Deng kicking things off on the cusp of half time leading to an all-in push and shove.

Post-match Deng said it was soon forgotten once the teams hit the tunnel. 

"I walked into the changeroom and everyone was telling me to calm down - and I was already calm," he told Fox Sports.