Haaland back among the goals as City go top

Erling Haaland returned to goalscoring form to see Manchester City past a resilient Everton team and go top of the table.

Credit must go to Sean Dyche's side for making it such a difficult afternoon with City's patience and star-studded bench eventually making the difference.

It took until the 71st minute for the home side to have their first shot on target and it was the opening goal. A corner from the right found its way through to Erling Haaland who put all his power behind the ball to ensure it would hit the net from close range.

That goal was the Norwegian's first for City since November but he didn't have to wait long for another.

With Everton now having to go forward more, City were able to catch them out on the break. Substitute Kevin De Bruyne was able to free Haaland with an incisive pass with just five minutes of normal time to play.

There was still plenty for Haaland to do but he made it look easy. The striker first shrugged off the challenge of Jarrad Branthwaite like it was nothing before finishing coolly past Jordan Pickford.

It had been two shots on target for City and two goals – the machine purring at its most efficient.

The Toffees almost made for an exciting end to the game when Beto had the ball in the net just before an added 10 minutes of stoppage time but the Portuguese forward was well offside.

That result moves City to the top of the Premier League table, one point ahead of Liverpool and three ahead of Arsenal with all three teams having played 23 games.

xG: Manchester City (1.77) 2-0 (0.26) Everton

FULL-TIME | Three points, secured! 🔒

🩵 2-0 🍬 #ManCity | @okx pic.twitter.com/5a9EIq6t2O

— Manchester City (@ManCity) February 10, 2024