Manchester City defeated Crystal Palace 4-1 at Selhurst Park in the opening fixture of the second matchday of the Premier League season.
Erling Haaland and Rayan Cherki each scored twice for the visiting side, as Manchester City put on a show of force in south London. Crystal Palace found their only goal of the game through an own goal by Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Haaland, sporting a new hairstyle but maintaining his usual goalscoring habits, opened the scoring in the 17th minute. The Norwegian striker is known for his prolific goalscoring record since joining Manchester City from Borussia Dortmund.
Cherki secures the victory
Cherki extended the lead for the defending champions with a beautiful goal in the 54th minute. The French attacking midfielder then restored his team's two goal advantage with another impressive strike in the 59th minute, essentially putting the game out of reach.
Crystal Palace had briefly reduced the deficit to 2-1 in the 56th minute when Donnarumma put the ball into his own net, but the home side could not challenge further.
Haaland then scored his second goal of the match in the 84th minute to complete the 4-1 victory. The win serves as strong preparation for Manchester City, who will face Greek club AEK Athens in the League Phase of the UEFA Champions League.
Bouaddi makes his debut
Ayyoub Bouaddi made his first appearance for Manchester City after coming on as a substitute in the 82nd minute. The 18 year old midfielder recently joined the club from French side Lille.
Manchester City paid a transfer fee of 95 million euros for Bouaddi, with an additional 5 million euros in potential add ons.
The match was played at Selhurst Park, the traditional home of Crystal Palace in south London. The stadium has hosted the club's home games since it opened in 1924.
Weekend fixtures and standings
The second matchday of the Premier League continues with four matches scheduled for August 29. Liverpool will host Nottingham Forest at Anfield, while Bournemouth will play Everton.
Coventry City will face Hull City, and Tottenham Hotspur will meet Newcastle United in London.
Five matches are scheduled for August 30. Chelsea will play Brighton and Hove Albion at Stamford Bridge, Leeds United will face Brentford, and Sunderland will meet Fulham.
Manchester United will also host Ipswich Town on August 30. The matchday will conclude on August 31 when Aston Villa play Arsenal at Villa Park.
Manchester City currently top the Premier League table with six points from two games. Crystal Palace remain at the bottom of the standings with zero points from their first two matches.
Brighton, Arsenal, Brentford, Everton, Hull, Chelsea, Ipswich, and Leeds all have three points after one game played.
Liverpool and Newcastle United have one point each. Fulham, Bournemouth, Sunderland, Nottingham Forest, Manchester United, Coventry, Tottenham, and Aston Villa all have zero points after their opening fixtures.
