Match Report & Player Ratings: Crystal Palace 0-3 Manchester City (Premier League) | OneFootball

Manchester City built on two good wins against Sunderland and Real Madrid to secure their fifth consecutive victory, beating Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park in their first encounter since the FA Cup final.

A brace from Erling Haaland and a goal from Phil Foden saw the Blues once again close the gap to Premier League leaders Arsenal to two points.

The opening 10 minutes of the contest were very cagey, with only one shot being produced by either side. The first major chance of the game came when City’s defence was completely opened up by Adam Wharton in the 16th minute. Thankfully, Jeremy Pino lacked the necessary composure and fired his one-on-one effort into the crossbar.

It took until just before the half-hour mark for City to have their first shot on target. Nico Gonzalez won a free kick and Phil Foden tried to beat Dean Henderson from range, but his effort was saved by the Eagles’ goalkeeper.

Pep Guardiola’s side opened the scoring in the 40th minute through Haaland, who scored his seventh Premier League goal against Palace. Matheus Nunes was given space on the edge of the box and duly whipped in a world-class cross. Haaland peeled off the back of Chris Richards and produced a well-directed header to give the visitors the lead.

The hosts had appeals for a penalty waved away just three minutes later. Jean-Philippe Mateta collided with Gianluigi Donnarumma after the big Frenchman was played through on goal – but the Italian made clear contact with the ball.

Shortly after the start of the second period, Gonzalez was caught in possession by Wharton but the young Englishman could only fire his effort into the post. This kick-started a 10-minute spell of pressure from the hosts, in which there were numerous half-chances.

Rayan Cherki slipped Tijjani Reijnders through on goal in the 56th minute after producing a world-class turn on the halfway line. The Dutchman fired a powerful low strike at Henderson’s goal and the Englishman had to save the strike with his outstretched boot – but Haaland was disappointed that the ball was not squared to him for a tap-in.

City doubled their lead in the 68th minute. A loose touch from a Palace player allowed Haaland to win the ball back and pass it to Cherki. The Frenchman weaved through a couple of Eagles defenders and set up Foden, who produced his trademark, driven left-footed finish from just outside the box.

The game settled down for the subsequent 10 minutes before the hosts had a succession of shots which were blocked collectively by a resolute City backline. Glasner’s side mounted a good spell of pressure after the 80th minute, with Eddie Nketiah stinging the gloves of Donnarumma.

Savinho came on for Tijjani Reijnders in the 85th minute and a slip from the hosts allowed him to run almost the entire length of the pitch and win a penalty minutes after he came on. Haaland stepped up and sent Henderson the wrong way to put the icing on a sweet tasting cake for Manchester City.

Here’s how we rated the City players after Sunday’s Premier League contest!

Starting XI

Gianluigi Donnarumma – 6.5/10

Did not have any major saves to make but dealt well with what Palace threw at him, especially from crosses and set pieces. The experienced Italian was relatively smooth playing out from the back and clean sheets in each of his last two league games are a big positive.

Matheus Nunes – 8/10

Built upon a top performance in midweek against Real Madrid and produced another excellent display, looking solid defensively and providing quality in the final third. The Portuguese is on the path to becoming one of City’s most reliable performers, setting up Haaland for the opener with a mouth-watering cross.

Ruben Dias – 6.5/10

Not his most assured performance in a City shirt. He struggled to match Mateta’s pace and power at times, and almost made a huge mistake on the ball just before the hour mark. Looked very comfortable once Nketiah came on and won a few big headers in Palace’s late spell of pressure.

Josko Gvardiol – 7/10

A very smooth performance, both on and off the ball. Dealt with Mateta better than Dias and used his pace well on the cover.

Nico O’Reilly – 6.5/10

Not his most impactful performance of the season, perhaps due to not having his regular partner on the left flank – Jeremy Doku, who missed the trip to London due to injury, alongside him. Nevertheless, he deserves some credit for another solid defensive display.

Nico Gonzalez – 6.5/10 

The stalwart of City’s midfield looked slightly jaded against Oliver Glasner’s side, losing the ball in dangerous areas a couple of times. But he produced a solid enough performance out of possession.

Tijjani Reijnders – 6/10

Reijnders is an excellent third-man runner but was unable to consistently impact the game due to the Eagles’ solid defensive structure. He showed a good defensive work rate, but it just was not the game for him overall. He should have found the back of the net as his finishing remains an area that needs to be worked on.

Bernardo Silva – 6.5/10

The Manchester City captain has never been the most charismatic player on the pitch, which sometimes earns him criticism from fans. Today, he produced a particularly dogged performance, keeping things simple in possession and running hard when City were without the ball.

Rayan Cherki – 8/10 (POTM)

Was always eager to get on the ball and try to make things happen. He created multiple chances by using his flair – and also tracked back well defensively. Showed excellent strength and dribbling ability in his much-deserved assist for the second goal.

Erling Haaland – 8/10

The Crystal Palace defenders did well to keep the big Norwegian quiet for most of the game. However, Haaland once again found a way onto the scoresheet with a top-tier header and a well-taken penalty. Goals win games.

Phil Foden – 7.5/10

City’s star of recent weeks was moved to the left flank to accommodate Doku’s absence. Although he was allowed to move infield in attacking areas, the 25-year-old was not quite at his best. However, it is the mark of a great player to impact games when you are not performing optimally, as he gave City a much-needed cushion with a well-taken finish.

Substitutes

Savinho – 7/10

Would have been gutted not to start in the absence of Doku. Did well to sprint away from the Palace defenders and win the penalty. Perfectionists may argue he should have finished the chance himself.

Rayan Ait Nouri, Rico Lewis and Omar Marmoush – N/A

All three came onto the pitch late on and did nothing of note.