Manchester City 5-0 Norwich City: Talking points as Jesus stars and Grealish scores on his home debut.
Manchester City put their recent losing run behind them by beating Norwich City on Saturday afternoon.
An unfortunate own goal from Tim Krul and a simple tap-in from new signing Jack Grealish gave City a quick start before Laporte, Raheem Sterling, Mahrez sealed the win with second-half goals.
After losing to Liverpool in their opening game, Norwich City would have wished for some respite in their return to the Premier League after a year in the Championship. They were, however, tasked with stopping a Man City team who were looking to correct their recent woes in front of goal and get back to winning ways after losing to Leicester City in the Community Shield and Tottenham in the League.
The Canaries were simply outplayed by Pep Guardiola’s side, who wasted no time in getting going with the game.
The hosts fashioned their first chance of the game in the second minute when Kyle Walker tested Tim Krul. from a tight angle. By the sixth minute, they were ahead when a good ball in the box by Gabriel Jesus came off Tim Krul and into the back of the net.
The Cityzens doubled their lead through Grealish, who was making his home debut after some good work from Jesus. City got their third of the day when Jesus found Raheem Sterling with his third assist of the day and City’s third goal.
Laporte scored the fourth of the night before Riyad Mahrez finished the rout with a sublime goal.
At Anytime-Football, we look at three of the main talking points of the game.
Grealish gets goal in home debut
After two disappointing games for Grealish at City, it was time to finally prove his haters wrong. The English man who became English football’s most expensive player when he moved to Manchester this summer have been asked a lot of questions in recent times after his quiet start to life at the Etihad.
But against Norwich, the former Aston Villa forward finally got off the mark, scoring a crucial second to knock the steam out of Norwich City and put his side in commanding position early on.
Although the goal was not spectacular and was all about the hard work of Gabriel Jesus, it will be enough to settle the nerves of Grealish, who was making his home debut for his champions.
Farke’s naivety might cost Norwich City
In his preview for this game, Pep Guardiola was full of praise for Norwich City manager Daniel Farke and his playing style.
The German is known for his fearlessness and attacking approach to the game. However, this quality might be the reason Norwich’s second attempt at Premier League football under his management might end in relegation.
His insistence of playing his game even when the opponent is superior is seen as a bold move and is often commendable, but it has backfired in his first two games as his side have conceded eight times and scored zero goals.
Despite going toe-to-toe with City, it took his team until the 78th minute to register their first shot of the game. This proves that his so-called attacking plan isn’t working. A switch to more balance and less adventure against the ‘big teams’ might more pragmatic if he wants Norwich to continue in top-flight football.
Jesus shines as City continue to chase Kane
Manchester City’s pursuit of Kane is well documented and is likely to go on in the coming week. The talk has almost made the presence of Jesus Gabriel to be forgotten. But against Norwich, the Brazilian showed that he could be of immense help if City fails to land Kane. The striker started on the right-wing against Norwich and was a constant thorn in the flesh for the hapless Canaries.
His direct running and crosses led to City’s first three goals, and he was duly awarded the man of the match.
