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Sep 27, 2025 12:09-04:00

Man City player ratings vs Burnley: Erling Haaland is the difference again - Norwegian grabs two goals and assist as Pep Guardiola's side eventually rout Clarets

Never write off Erling Haaland. Even when he hasn't scored after 90 minutes. The Norwegian looked like he was having a quiet game as Manchester City laboured to victory over Burnley but he came alive right at the end, signing off with two goals as well as an assist. Before the striker's stoppage-time blitz, City were grateful to two own goals from Maxime Esteve and one from Matheus Nunes, set up by Haaland.

But City's goal-machine would not rest until he had made his mark and he finally did so by slamming home a Jeremy Doku cross in the 90th minute. He was not done, and with the last action of the game he bulldozed onto a loose ball after slack defending by the visitors to score once more, making it eight Premier League goals this season.

There was even better news for City at full-time as Crystal Palace shocked Liverpool, trimming their lead over Guardiola's side at the top of the table to six points.

GOAL rates Man City's players from the Etihad Stadium...

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Goalkeeper & Defence
Gianluigi Donnarumma (6/10):
Made a smart save from Quilindschy Hartman to prevent Burnley going in front but was otherwise untroubled. Did send a pass straight out which underlined his lack of distribution but right now his shot-stopping is doing all the talking.
Matheus Nunes (7/10):
A performance of two halves. Culpable for the equaliser as he was too slow to stop the cross but he made two crucial interventions after the break: blocking a goal-bound shot from Lyle Foster before rifling City back in front.
Ruben Dias (5/10):
Not his most comfortable display. Struggled to handle Burnley's breaks and diverted Anthony's shot straight in.
Josko Gvardiol (6/10):
More assured than his centre-back partner even though he was the one to get substituted.
Nico O'Reilly (6/10):
Another demonstration of his physical prowess with a touch of technical class to boot.

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Midfield
Phil Foden (7/10):
Another strong performance. Pounced quickly to force Esteve into action for the first goal and pulled the strings as City eventually got the job done.
Nico Gonzalez (6/10):
A steady performance in the absence of Rodri, moving the ball about well and doing things the simple way.
Tijjani Reijnders (5/10):
Didn't influence the game as he can and didn't get in many dangerous positions.
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Attack
Savinho (6/10):
Threatened a lot early on as his twisting runs stretched Burnley's defence. Lacked end product and was removed for Bobb.
Erling Haaland (7/10):
It was a long time coming but Haaland still delivered when it mattered. He laid the ball off for Nunes' all-important goal but craved goals of his own. After being denied by Martin Dubravka he got two in added time, each with a typically ruthless finish.
Jeremy Doku (8/10):
City's most important player by a distance. Gave Kyle Walker a rough time on his return to the Etihad Stadium and played a big role in the first goal before setting up Haaland for his first.

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Subs & Manager
Oscar Bobb (7/10): A brilliant cameo. Looked to have scored three minutes after coming on although the goal was given to the hapless Esteve.
Nathan Ake (6/10): Made sure Burnley stood no chance of a comeback.
Rico Lewis (N/A): Replaced Reijnders in the 83rd minute.
Bernardo Silva (N/A): An 83rd-minute replacement for O'Reilly.
Pep Guardiola (6/10): Don't be fooled by the scoreline, this was far from an easy win. He was unfortunate not to count on Rodri due to fitness issues and although he will not be pleased with the first half performance his changes led to a big improvement.

Goalkeeper & Defence

Midfield

Attack

Subs & Manager