Brazilian
starlet Gabriel Jesus had struck early on to break the deadlock and give the
hosts the first advantage
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Kevin De Bruyne played a
part in five goals as Pep Guardiola’s side put on a sensational display to move
clear at the top of the Premier League.
Pep
Guardiola was in visible despair as City failed to go ahead with the early
chances in the match
|
While
the goals were shared around between Gabriel Jesus (2), Raheem Sterling, David
Silva, Fernandinho, Leroy Sane and Bernardo Silva, it was De Bruyne’s name
chanted loudest by the fans who gave him a standing ovation when he was
replaced in the second half.
In
contrast to the dull goalless draw played by Manchester United at Anfield
earlier in the day, City were irrepressible and reminiscent of Guardiola’s
Barcelona team at their best.
Stoke,
who fielded 18-year-old debutant Thomas Edwards, showed courage to fight their
way back to 3-2 having fallen 3-0 behind. But that only seemed to annoy the
home side who promptly scored four more of their own. They now lead the league
by two points.
Manchester
City have now scored 17 goals in their last three Premier League games at The
Etihad Stadium and are averaging more than three goals in the league this
season (29 in eight matches). Carry on and they will smash Chelsea’s record
total of 103 in 2010.
Guardiola
ignored any potential travel hangovers from the international break, and named
his strongest team with Sergio Aguero returning among the substitutes two weeks
after his car accident in Amsterdam.
Stoke
just about survived for the opening 17 minutes but were then sliced apart after
De Bruyne’s pass played in Sterling behind marker Erik Pieters.
Sterling
showed composure to pull back for Jesus, who tapped in to follow up his two
goals in midweek for his country against Chile.
This
too was like watching Brazil. After 19 minutes it was 2-0. De Bruyne looked one
way, and passed the other to Sane on the byline. His cutback was slotted him by
Sterling, his seventh goal already this season having managed just ten in the
whole of the last campaign.
Manchester
was revelling in the kind of performance Guardiola was brought in to deliver
and the third goal was as good as it gets.
Jesus
fed Sane whose low cross went across the width of the 18-yard box to Sterling.
His lay-off found Silva arriving in the box and the Spaniard was able to take a
touch at full stretch before firing in the third.
You’d
rarely seen a collection of more bedraggled players that Stoke’s set of
red-and-white stripes and Hughes has to take some blame for putting up rookie
Edwards against the rampant Sane, and leaving three up front when his side were
being utterly dominated in midfield with less than 20 per cent possession.
In
the circumstances, you had to admire the visitors for hitting back with a
couple of unexpected strikes of their own.
Approaching
half-time, Diouf played a one-two with Jese and fired in past Ederson via a
deflection off Fabian Delph’s outstretched leg.
Hughes
made two changes at the interval – Bruno Martins Indi and Ibrahim Afellay on
for Kevin Wimmer and Jese – and incredibly, they’d scored a second just over 60
seconds after the restart.
In
a neat role reversal, it was young Edwards who got the better of Sane by the
touchline and his cross into the box was met with a miscued header from Diouf,
the ball bouncing off Kyle Walker’s chest and in.
It
was tragic for Edwards that in the very next attack, he had to be carried off
on a stretcher close to tears after being caught by a sliding tackle from
Delph. He was given sympathetic applause from all sides of the ground as
Ramadan Sobhi came on.
With
the scoreline too close for comfort, the incredible De Bruyne moved up the
gears to make it 4-2.
The
Belgian, who covers most blades of grass during an afternoon, popped up
alongside the right-hand touchline, powering forward before producing a low
arced cross allowed Jesus to fire into the roof of the net from close range.
His
square ball then made its way to Delph, and then Fernandinho who shot into the
top corner from 25 yards for 5-2 after an hour.
Four
minutes later, De Bruyne played the pass of the game, a beautiful curled ball
to Sane who finished in style. Two minutes after that, the Belgian was allowed
to depart to save Stoke further punishment.
Sane
was fractionally wide of adding a seventh goal when his free-kick hit the
sidenetting. But it did come after 79 minutes when substitute Bernardo Silva
danced his way into the penalty area to take Sterling’s pass in his stride and
flick the ball past Jack Butland.
Were you watching, Jose
Mourinho?
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