Manchester City secured a commanding 4-1 victory over Crystal Palace on Friday night, maintaining their flawless start to the new Premier League campaign. Both Erling Haaland and Ryan Cherki bagged impressive braces at Selhurst Park, demonstrating the formidable attacking depth available under manager Enzo Maresca as the champions collected their second consecutive league win.
The match began with spirited resistance from the home side, who tested City’s tactical setup during the opening exchanges. However, the deadlock was broken in the 17th minute against the run of play. Antoine Semenyo delivered an inviting cross into the penalty area, allowing Haaland to rise above his marker and power a header past Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson, who failed to secure the ball. This marked the prolific Norwegian striker’s first official goal of the domestic season.
City continued to probe for further openings as the half progressed. Phil Foden fired an effort wide in the 21st minute, while Eddie Nketiah squandered a promising opportunity for Palace shortly after the interval. The visitors doubled their advantage in the 54th minute when Cherki carved through the opposition defence to finish with composure.
Palace responded swiftly two minutes later to reduce the deficit. Yeremy Pino struck a curling free-kick that rattled the crossbar, rebounding off City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma before trickling across the goal line.
Any hopes of a home comeback were quickly extinguished by a relentless City side. In the 59th minute, Cherki restored the two-goal cushion when his ambitious strike took a decisive deflection off defender Chris Richards, leaving the goalkeeper stranded. The French midfielder thus secured his second goal of an outstanding evening. Haaland then capped off the resounding victory in the 85th minute, meeting a crisp pass from Foden to unleash a venomous left-footed drive into the back of the net.
The comprehensive triumph leaves Maresca’s squad with maximum points from their opening two fixtures. The reigning heavyweights will now enjoy a week-long interval to regroup before hosting newly promoted Coventry City. Following that fixture, attention will turn immediately to the historic Old Trafford stadium, where City prepares to face arch-rivals Manchester United in the season’s much-anticipated first Manchester derby.
