Manchester City continued their winning start to the 2026-27 Premier League season on Friday with a 4-1 victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
Erling Haaland opened the scoring in the 17th minute and then scored again late in the second half, while Rayan Cherki bagged himself a brace in an excellent showing for the Frenchman.
Palace thought they'd gotten themselves back into the game when they halved the deficit at 2-1 but Cherki hit back just two minutes after Gianluigi Donnarumma's own goal to make it 3-1. Haaland then struck again in the 84th minute.
Here's how Man City's players fared in their second Premier League game of the season.
Manager rating (Out of 10)
Enzo Maresca, 10 -- That's two wins in two for the man who has the unenviable task of following in Pep Guardiola's footsteps. And this time, his side didn't leave it late to secure the victory! City cruised past Palace and Maresca's decision to start Cherki in this match paid off as he was repaid with a brace and a brilliant performance from the former Lyon man. After the dismal FA Community Shield showing against Arsenal, Maresca has gotten City to bounce back quickly by picking up all available points from his first two Premier League games.
Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best, 5 = average)
GK Gianluigi Donnarumma, 5 -- Donnarumma is marked down here mostly due to his unfortunate own goal, as the ball bounced off his back and into the net from Yeremy Pino's free-kick. The Italian didn't have too much to do throughout the game as City dominated Palace.
RB Abdukodir Khusanov, 8 -- Like Donnarumma, he didn't have a huge amount to do but he was tidy in possession and helped to keep the Palace forwards quiet.
LB Josko Gvardiol, 8 -- The Croatian did his job and ensured that Donnarumma didn't have much to worry about. A mature display from the man who scored the winner for City against Bournemouth last weekend. Also nabbed himself an assist for Cherki's second goal.
CB Marc Guéhi, 8 -- Assured, calm and collected as ever. Guéhi rarely panics and he defended confidently against a lacklustre Palace at Selhurst Park.
CB Rúben Dias, 8 -- Like his centre-back partner Guéhi, captain Dias was commanding at the back. He continues to be a core member of this City squad, even under a new head coach.
CM Elliot Anderson, 8 -- At the heart of midfield again, played with confidence and controlled the tempo of the game as City ran rampant over the Eagles. The former Nottingham Forest man is settling in nicely to life at City.
CM Nico O'Reilly, 8 -- Although he is naturally a left-back, this was the England international's second consecutive start in midfield and he handled it well once again as he partnered up neatly with Anderson. Might he be playing in midfield more regularly going forward?
CM Rayan Cherki, 10 -- The Frenchman put on a delightful display in this match as he scored a brace. The first goal was a thing of beauty, as he danced through the Palace defence and topped the move off with a sweet finish. Just when it looked like Palace might have gotten back into the game, Cherki scored again from the edge of the box to take the wind out of the Eagles' sails and send City on their way to an emphatic victory.
RW Phil Foden, 8 -- There's been plenty of talk about Foden after he missed out on a place in England's World Cup squad this summer but he was on song here as he picked up two assists -- one for Cherki and one for Haaland. He did, however, miss a golden chance when City were 1-0 up in the first half to make it 2-0, but Cherki doubled their lead in the second half anyway. He has now started both league games under Maresca so far.
LW Antoine Semenyo, 8 -- A confident display from a top player, Semenyo whipped in the cross for Haaland to get his head to for the Norwegian's first goal. Semenyo so often dazzles on the wing and got past the Palace defenders often with what looked like ease.
ST Erling Haaland, 10 -- New season, new haircut, same Haaland! After a summer in which he helped Norway make it to the quarterfinals of the World Cup, Haaland is back in the Premier League scoring charts again. He opened the scoring in this match and finished it off. He is inevitable.
Substitutes (players introduced after 70 minutes = no rating)
Mateo Kovačić, N/A -- Came on for Gvardiol in the 75th minute to help see the game out with City 3-1 up.
Ayyoub Bouaddi, N/A -- The Premier League's most expensive teenager came on in the 82nd minute for Anderson with City in full control of the match. There are big expectations around the young Morocco international.
Ryan McAidoo, N/A -- The 18-year-old replaced the magnificent Cherki in the 82nd minute with City dominant.
Vitor Reis, N/A -- The young Brazilian centre-back came on for Khusanov -- who he was signed in the same transfer window with in 2025 -- for just a few minutes.
Kaden Braithwaite, N/A -- The City academy player came on for O'Reilly in the 89th minute. Didn't have much to do.