Manchester City vs Crystal Palace ended 4-2 with Haaland hat trick sealing incredible comeback win
Haaland has three goals and one assist in three games for Manchester City, while Kevin De Bruyne is off to a similarly hot start (one goal and three assists). After holding back-to-back clean sheets to begin the season, Man City conceded three goals (in a space of 26 minutes, no less) regardless of opponent. Injuries at centre defence are a concern, with Aymeric Laporte anticipated to be out for a few weeks and Nathan Ake suffering a groyne injury suffered in the 21st minute against Newcastle. Guardiola’s final two centre defence options are Ruben Dias and John Stones.
Palace’s fortunes have slowly improved over the last three weeks (loss, draw, victory) as Patrick Vieira’s team finds its feet and navigates a challenging early schedule. After Saturday, the Eagles will have faced half of the top six sides in only four weeks, with hard tests against Brentford and Newcastle next before a trip to Manchester United to cap off their first seven games. When the fixtures slow down in October, they’ll be battle-tested and battle-hardened. Wilfried Zaha has three of the team’s four goals this season, while the youth in midfield and defence continue to grow at a quick pace against top-level opponents.
🔵 TEAM NEWS 🔵
XI | Ederson, Walker, Stones, Dias, Cancelo, Rodrigo, De Bruyne (C), Bernardo, Mahrez, Haaland, Foden
SUBS | Ortega Moreno, Gundogan, Alvarez, Gomez, Palmer, Gomes, Lewis, Knight, Wilson-Esbrand#ManCity | @HaysWorldwide pic.twitter.com/vyZoI93fv2
— Manchester City (@ManCity) August 27, 2022
Our starting XI is here 👊#CPFC | #MCICRY pic.twitter.com/O2GZJsqJ9i
— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) August 27, 2022
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Man City gave up three goals against Newcastle last weekend and two against Palace on Saturday, and they’ve simply been careless. Unnecessary errors must be avoided, and Pep Guardiola will most likely focus on this following the game. Palace didn’t have much of the ball, but scoring on their first (and only) two chances isn’t good enough from the defending champions, who allowed crosses into the box to generate unneeded havoc.
A header, a tap in, then a strong turn and finish. This was Erling Haaland at his best, which is why Manchester City signed him this summer. He answered the bat call with minimal fuss, just when City needed their new star striker to stand strong. He bullied Palace like a honey monster and turned the Etihad Stadium as his own playground. Haaland accomplished all of this with the assistance of his slick City colleagues, although they may have merely drawn this game in the past. Haaland’s clinical edge is something they haven’t had since Sergio Aguero left, and it offers them an extra lift in their quest for the championship.
Palace found themselves with a 2-0 lead, and had Wilfried Zaha been healthy and available, the outcome might have been quite different. Palace just couldn’t hold the ball and were always under siege. They held out until the 53rd minute before City scored, but if Zaha had been present, they would have undoubtedly found him up top and he would have relieved them of the strain.
In the end, City had a decisive victory. Because Palace led 2-0 early on, City enjoyed more more of the possession than normal as Patrick Vieira’s team sat back and sought to defend their advantage. Best of luck with it. The rest of the game saw Kevin de Bruyne, Phil Foden, and Bernardo Silva command the tempo (City had 75 percent possession), and Erling Haaland finish the opportunities that were provided for him.
The match ended 4 -2 in which Erling Haaland got hat trick that demonstrated his ability to score goals of various varieties. His first of several trebles while wearing a City jersey.
