Man City player ratings vs Crystal Palace: Irrepressible Erling Haaland & Phil Foden double act downs plucky Eagles as Pep Guardiola's side keep pressure on Arsenal at Premier League summit

Erling Haaland and Phil Foden raised their game as Manchester City beat Crystal Palace 3-0 despite producing an underwhelming performance in south London. The Eagles hit the woodwork in either half, but Haaland gave Pep Guardiola's side the lead late in the first with a towering header before Foden slammed the ball into the net with his favoured left foot to put the game out of Palace's sight.

City monopolised possession in the first half but had only four touches in the Palace box, compared to the hosts' 18. Palace posed a threat with their frequent quick and direct breaks, such as when Yeremy Pino clattered the bar after being played in by Adam Wharton or Ismaila Sarr getting into the area and flashing a shot across the face of goal.

City had struggled to get going despite hogging the ball but took the lead in the 40th minute after an elaborate move involving more than 20 passes, which culminated in Nunes crossing for Haaland, who leapt high into the air to head into the far corner.

The visitors had another scare early in the second half when Wharton hit the post, but they managed the game well as Palace grew more frustrated. Foden's strike, which owed a lot to a brilliant jinking run from Rayan Cherki, delivered what was effectively the fatal blow in the 69th minute before Haaland added his second and City's third from the penalty spot in the 89th.

GOAL rates Man City's players from Selhurst Park...

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Goalkeeper & Defence
Gianluigi Donnarumma (7/10):
Had to be alert throughout due to Palace's bright play and was ready for everything they threw at him. Won two battles with Jean-Philippe Mateta.
Matheus Nunes (7/10):
Delivered a perfect cross for Haaland to break the deadlock and gave a solid performance defensively, a big improvement on his display against Real Madrid.
Ruben Dias (6/10):
Mostly solid apart from when he gave the ball straight to Warton, which led to a Palace break.
Josko Gvardiol (6/10):
An early blow to the head didn't stop him from making crunching tackles and getting on top of Palace's attacks.
Nico O'Reilly (6/10):
Had a testing first half, struggling to handle Sarr. Grew more composed as the game went on and reasserted himself by picking Sarr's pocket to snuff out a good chance.

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Midfield
Bernardo Silva (6/10):
Much better than his rusty display in Madrid as he kept the ball well. Fed Nunes when he crossed for Haaland.
Nico Gonzalez (5/10):
Sat very deep and was overwhelmed on several occasions, getting mugged by Pino in the first half and again when Wharton hit the post.
Tijjani Reijnders (6/10):
Didn't get the rub of the green with his opportunities, shooting straight at Dean Henderson and being dispossessed by Chris Richards when he was about to pull the trigger.
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Attack
Rayan Cherki (7/10):
Showed more dazzling footwork to beat three defenders and lay the ball off for Foden to score. Had little joy before then but he is developing a great habit of making key contributions at key moments.
Erling Haaland (7/10):
Had little involvement in the game but all he needed was one sight of goal to give City the lead. Held the ball up well when Foden scored and faced down taunts from Palace fans for not taking the penalty in the FA Cup final by coolly dispatching his spot-kick.
Phil Foden (7/10):
Turned it on in the second half to score his fifth goal in three league games.

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Subs & Manager
Savinho (8/10):
Stormed forward from his own half and won the penalty just a minute after coming on.
Rayan Ait-Nouri (N/A):
Brought on in added time.
Rico Lewis (N/A):
Brought on in added time.
Omar Marmoush (N/A):
Brought on in added time.
Pep Guardiola (7/10):
Not a fluid performance despite the scoreline but given the quality of Palace he will be delighted with how the team navigated the game and managed to win despite being far from their best.

Goalkeeper & Defence

Midfield

Attack

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