Man City vs Crystal Palace LIVE: Kevin De Bruyne inspires City comeback from two goals down in seven-goal thriller
Manchester City 5-2 Crystal Palace: Kevin De Bruyne was the hero of the hour as City fought back from 2-0 down to an utterly dominant win
Manchester City contested a rollercoaster seven-goal thriller against Crystal Palace, producing one of their best performances of the season to fight back from two goals down.
Pep Guardiola’s men finished 5-2 up at the Etihad, with departing star Kevin De Bruyne sparking City into life and ensuring they put the pressure on Newcastle and Chelsea in the battle for the Champions League places with the Premier League now guaranteed five qualification spots in Europe’s top tier.
The hosts moved up to fourth in the top flight, just two points off third-placed Nottingham Forest, with goals from De Bruyne, Omar Marmoush, Mateo Kovacic, James McAtee and Nico O'Reilly completing a stunning comeback after going 2-0 down in a little over 20 minutes.
Eberechi Eze and Chris Richards - the latter scoring his first Premier League goal this season - put the visitors in front, with City completely carved open at the back, but the game hinged on a third Palace goal and second for Eze, which was disallowed for offside. From there De Bruyne led an inspired fightback to dismantle one of the league’s in-form sides and go some way to ending his long career at the Etihad on a high.
Follow all of the latest from the Etihad Stadium with our live blog below:
Manchester City 5-2 Crystal Palace
82 mins: Changes for both sides. Devenny and Franca come on for Wharton and Eze, and Marmoush and McAtee are replaced by Savinho and Bobb. McAtee gets a big hug from Guardiola.
GOAL! Manchester City 5-2 Crystal Palace
79 mins: Outstanding goal from O’Reilly for 5-2! City pile the pressure on once more, McAtee lobs in a cross, Palace fail to clear and instead knock it straight into the path of O’Reilly. The youngster shoots and it takes a slight deflection off Clyne and into the back of the net past a diving Henderson.
Manchester City 4-2 Crystal Palace
76 mins: Chilwell sends in a looping cross to Sarr in the centre of the box in the visitors most promising passage of play for a while, but it’s offside.
Those injury stoppages have sucked the life out of this game a little bit now.
Manchester City 4-2 Crystal Palace
74 mins: It looked like Ederson pulled something in his groin playing a short pass.
In a bit of a holding pattern now. Palace have a little bit of possession but look nothing like the bright, energetic side that scored two on the counter in the early stages of this match.
Manchester City 4-2 Crystal Palace
70 mins: McAtee goes into the book for sliding into Lerma.
Break in play as Ederson needs treatment for something or other, he looks to have injured his groin, and that’s the end of the day for Ederson. Guardiola has come out to bark orders at his players. Ortega makes the swap.
Palace collapse mirrors City's in early stage
A strange old game. City are rampant now, Palace falling apart. Their lack of defending when Ederson set up James McAtee for the fourth was similar to City's early struggles.
Manchester City 4-2 Crystal Palace
66 mins: Some much-needed substitutions as Palace look to find something to salvage from this game: Ben Chilwell and Nathaniel Clyne are on for Maxence Lacroix and Tyrick Mitchell.
Manchester City 4-2 Crystal Palace
65 mins: About that McAtee goal: that was Ederson’s fourth assist of the season, extending his Premier League record, and a sublime one it was too.
De Bruyne looks miffed to have conceded a foul on Eze after an unusually bad free-kick from the City captain. The England international goes down clutching his left shin and is still on the ground. Oliver Glasner looks worried.
SAVE! Manchester City 4-2 Crystal Palace
59 mins: Total madness in the Palace box and City should be 5-2 up. De Bruyne lays off a beautiful pass for Marmoush, but Henderson leaps in the way to save, Gundogan can’t get the rebound, and O’Reilly finally blasts it over the bar.
Palace are utterly on the back foot and completely exposed at the back.
GOAL! Manchester City 4-2 Crystal Palace
56 mins: McAtee gets his goal! First Premier League start for City, first Premier League goal.
It’s a fabulous long ball forward by Ederson, which falls to McAtee just on the edge of the box. He’s played onside by the Palace defence, takes a touch to round Henderson, and with the keeper marooned miles out from his goal the youngster slots home.
It’s checked and cleared, and City have gone from 2-0 down to 4-2 up.
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