Manchester City ran out 4-1 victors against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Friday night to make it six points from six for Enzo Maresca in the Premier League.
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Manchester City made the trip to South London for their first away clash of the 2026/27 season, facing off against Pierre Sage's Crystal Palace, against whom they earned a well-merited 1-4 triumph on the road.
For those of a sky blue persuasion, the fixture got off to a perfect start, and following a spell of sustained Manchester City pressure, a superb Antoine Semenyo cross found Erling Haaland, who guided a deft header over Dean Henderson and into the back of the net, giving his side the lead with 17 minutes on the clock and maintaining his perfect run of goalscoring form on Selhurst Park soil.
For the remainder of the half, however, the home side grew into the game, fashioning multiple presentable chances, whilst City also squandered similar opportunities to double their lead before the interval, meaning the scoreline remained 0-1 heading into the break.
However, it didn't take long for City's magic maverick Rayan Cherki to steal the headlines, as just nine minutes after the restart the Frenchman produced some simply sublime footwork, gliding through multiple challenges with ease and calmly rolling the ball past the Crystal Palace captain into the bottom corner, doubling the Blues' lead on the night.
Erling Haaland and Rayan Cherki steered Manchester City to an excellent 4-1 win over Crystal Palace by scoring two apiece to place Enzo Maresca’s side at the top of the Premier League table.cityxtra.co.ukMatch Report & Player Ratings: Crystal Palace 1-4 Man City (Premier League)
Erling Haaland and Rayan Cherki steered Manchester City to an excellent 4-1 win over Crystal Palace by scoring two apiece to place Enzo Maresca’s side at the top of the Premier League table.
Despite the immaculate quality of this goal, the ecstasy was short-lived, as in the 56th minute the home side grabbed themselves a lifeline through Yeremi Pino who, after drawing the foul himself, struck an almost perfect free kick which hurtled against the inside of the post and crept in off the back of Gianluigi Donnarumma.
This proved to be a wake-up call to those adorned in black and yellow, as mere minutes later Rayan Cherki produced yet another moment of individual brilliance, taking on an ambitious strike from outside the area which took a slightly fortuitous deflection off of Chris Richards, sailing past Dean Henderson and restoring a two-goal deficit for Enzo Maresca's men.
Finally, with just six minutes of the ninety left to play, Manchester City's inevitable talisman Erling Haaland put the result beyond all reasonable doubt after some excellent work from Phil Foden, who slid the ball through to the Norwegian, allowing him to hammer it home mercilessly at the near post and cap off an excellent performance on match week two of the 2026/27 Premier League campaign.
Here are the five things we learnt from that exemplary result away in the English capital!
Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca has explained his decision to not name Rayan Cherki in his starting XI for Sunday’s 2-1 win over Bournemouth.cityxtra.co.ukEnzo Maresca Explains Rayan Cherki Bench Decision For Man City Win Over Bournemouth
Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca has explained his decision to not name Rayan Cherki in his starting XI for Sunday’s 2-1 win over Bournemouth.
Rayan Cherki: Simply Sensational
Following his almost instantaneous impact from the bench against Bournemouth last week, with the 23-year-old providing two assists to complete an impressive turnaround, I think it's safe to say the general consensus amongst the Manchester City faithful was that the former Lyon man simply had to start against Crystal Palace, and on Friday night he proved exactly why they were correct.
Two outstanding goals from the number 10 as he set the Premier League stage alight yet again and proved himself to be one of the division's most naturally gifted players. To put it simply, it's starting to become more and more apparent with each passing game that if City wish to perform at their highest level and challenge for silverware, Cherki must be one of the first names on Enzo Maresca's team sheet. He is the creative heartbeat of the side and will undoubtedly be integral throughout the season.
Cherki finished the season with a brilliant 16 Premier League goal contributions in just 19 starts last term, an exceptional output indeed, but with four already under his belt in the opening two games, who knows the heights he could reach this campaign? A thrilling prospect for City supporters but perhaps a rather ominous one for the rest of the league.
Manchester City talisman Erling Haaland has become the most expensive player in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) history ahead of the 2026/27 season.
cityxtra.co.uk Manchester City's Erling Haaland sets FPL record ahead of 2026/27 season Manchester City talisman Erling Haaland has become the most expensive player in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) history ahead of the 2026/27 season.
New Haircut, Same Erling Haaland
City's star man has arrived to this new season with a new look, but in regard to the footballing side of things, business has resumed as usual for the 26-year-old as he found the net at Selhurst Park for the fifth consecutive time, making it seven goals in five appearances at the ground.
He may have only had 20 touches of the football across ninety minutes, but it should be common knowledge by now that someone as ruthless as Erling Haaland will be sure to make them count, and make them count he did through two exquisite finishes, opening his account for the brand-new league campaigns in the right way as he aims to pursue a historic fourth golden boot in five years at the club, which would equal the record held by Mohamed Salah and Thierry Henry.
The number nine is absolutely invaluable to this Manchester City team, not only for his elite goalscoring numbers but also for his off-the-ball work ethic and leadership. Therefore, given that his understudy Omar Marmoush recently completed a loan move to Tottenham, extra precautions must be taken to ensure he is kept fit and firing throughout the season, as by and large, if Haaland is fit and at his unplayable best, so are Manchester City.
Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca has explained why the club went all-out to secure the £116 million arrival of Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest.cityxtra.co.ukEnzo Maresca Reveals Why Manchester City Broke Club Transfer Record for Elliot Anderson
Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca has explained why the club went all-out to secure the £116 million arrival of Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest.
Elliot Anderson: Everywhere
Whilst his lucrative transfer fee may have raised a few eyebrows at a staggering £116 million, in modern football these are the price tags you must pay to recruit top talent, and against Crystal Palace the 23-year-old Englishman showcased exactly why Manchester City were determined to bring him to the Etihad Stadium.
Anderson excelled at both his defensive and attacking duties up against the Eagles, making five tackles and three interceptions as well as winning seven ground duels whilst simultaneously producing a 91% pass accuracy with 89 accurate passes and 21 of those being line-breaking.
These statistics alone epitomise Elliot Anderson's game and exactly why Manchester City wanted his signature. He is the dictionary definition of a modern-day complete midfielder that is able to both win and progress the ball to a continually high standard. The former Nottingham Forest man had his fingerprints on everything positive for the Sky Blues on Friday night.
Yes, it is only three games in to his Manchester City career, but there certainly are promising signs, and if he can uphold this level of performance and tenacity consistently throughout the season and in the future when he develops with age, the club record fee will begin to look increasingly justified.
Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca has outlined his vision for Rayan Cherki and Phil Foden in his starting XI.cityxtra.co.ukManchester City manager Enzo Maresca has outlined his vision for Rayan Cherki and Phil Foden in his starting XI.
Enzo Maresca Expresses Phil Foden vs Rayan Cherki Competition Stance at Man City
Phil Foden: Bouncing Back
It is no secret that Phil Foden has struggled in recent seasons, but throughout his adversity there has still been no doubt that the class he possesses is permanent and that his performances have been hampered by a lack of confidence.
The 26-year-old was poor in the first half, missing two gilt-edged opportunities to put City 0-2 up on the night, chances that the Foden of old would've certainly buried without issue. What was refreshing, however, is how he responded in the second half.
The Englishman looked a lot sharper after the interval, eventually creating the joint most chances in the match (3) and earning himself two well-deserved assists, which will do his morale a world of good.
The Blues already have immense quality in forward areas with the likes of Rayan Cherki, Erling Haaland and Antoine Semenyo, but if Foden can build up a head of steam and find form this term, Manchester City's attacking arsenal would become even more formidable, which would be a welcome sight for Maresca as City once again aim to fight on all four fronts this season.
Speaking in his first interview as Manchester City manager, Enzo Maresca dropped a bold double hint regarding academy player usage and his tactical style of play.cityxtra.co.ukEnzo Maresca makes double hint on future of Man City including academy stars and playing style
Speaking in his first interview as Manchester City manager, Enzo Maresca dropped a bold double hint regarding academy player usage and his tactical style of play.
The Future Is Bright
Lastly, one particularly encouraging takeaway from the victory against Crystal Palace was the players who got the opportunity to feature from the bench. Not only did new signing from Lille Ayyoub Bouaddi make his debut for the club (and look to be a very tidy and talented footballer in the process, might I add), but two City Football academy graduates also made their Premier League debuts for the Blues in Ryan McAidoo and Kaden Braithwaite.
Maresca is historically known for utilising the youth talent at his disposal, and fortunately his principles appear to have remained the same at Manchester City. The Italian recently confirmed that McAidoo and Braithwaite, alongside midfield starlet Floyd Samba, would all be making the step up to the first team after impressing their new head coach during the pre-season tour in Asia.
Therefore, despite a considerable number of senior departures which have seen the club raise close to £400 million in player sales (including the obligatory fee of Omar Marmoush's loan to Tottenham), it is an incredibly exciting and intriguing possibility that throughout the first season of the Enzo Maresca era we could very well see academy graduates step up in their place and be trusted with significant minutes. The future is bright, City fans!