Thanks to a double from their Norwegian striker, the Mancunian club won at West Ham this Sunday (0-2).
Manchester City got off to a perfect start to their season by beating West Ham (0-2), one of the traditional Premier League underdogs. A success for the reigning English champions obtained thanks to a brace from their attacking rookie, Erling Haaland. The Norwegian first scored his first goal from the penalty spot shortly after the half-hour mark, before doubling the lead in the 66th minute. “He’s been good. I can’t teach him to score goals and he just needs to be comfortable,” reacted his coach Pep Guardiola.
After an intense start to the game and three back-to-back opportunities in less than five minutes for the Hammers, the game evened out. Gaurdiola’s men then took over the game without managing to find the fault. The Citizens’ dominance with 84% possession has been pretty fruitless. The fact of the match comes with the replacement of goalkeeper Fabianski by Alphonse Areola. The French international is guilty of a foul on Erling Haaland a few minutes after coming on. The Skyblues return to the locker room with a slight but logical advantage in the score.
In the second half, City regained control and as West Ham woke up on the hour mark, Erling Haaland came to kill the Hammers’ hopes. Ideally launched by De Bruyne in the back of the defense, the Norwegian striker opens his left foot to beat Areola a second time. The Citizens then managed the end of the match to win quietly during this 1time Premier League day. With this result, City join Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham who have all won their first game. The Skyblues are already 2 points ahead of Liverpool, held in check by Fulham on Saturday (2-2).
