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Manchester City sent a message to Arsenal with this chaotic victory that takes Enzo Maresca’s team three points clear as leaders during the three-week international break.
Until the Premier League resumes on 10 October City can enjoy their status while Mikel Arteta’s champions have to stew following Saturday’s 3-0 humbling at Brighton.
Maresca will review this match because City lacked control and may not have enjoyed a 5-3 win that featured two Antoine Semenyo strikes for them, a Brian Brobbey hat-trick for Sunderland, with Enzo Fernández, Rayan Cherki and Erling Haaland the other scorers.
Maresca’s side are entertaining for the neutral and heart-palpitating for the manager. When the normally calm Rúben Dias hit the ball towards his goal and scrambled to hoof off the line, this was City in microcosm, versus Régis Le Bris’ potent visitors. The conclusion, though, from the season opening phase is that City will compete with the Gunners to the end of the title race – providing they become less fragile.
Sunderland conceded first by allowing a break at a corner that ended in Dayann Methalie chopping down Iliman Ndiaye. Next came a moment of Fernández skill from a free-kick along the right-hand edge of the box. City’s £125m deadline-day acquisition from Chelsea asked Ndiaye to alter position in the area, then guided the ball straight home, on the near side, his instruction to the winger hoodwinking Robin Roefs, Sunderland’s goalkeeper, who ended up on his backside. It was a first goal for Fernández since his equaliser in the World Cup semi-final for Argentina against England.
Having been excellent, City fell asleep seconds later. Enzo Le Fée is one of Sunderland’s star acts and the pinpoint pass into Brobbey that split Dias and Matheus Nunes showed why. The No 9’s first touch was smart, allowing him to then beat, with the outside of his right boot, the onrushing Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Maresca had billed the contest as City’s toughest so far and you saw now that this was not regulation respectful manager-speak. Le Bris’ side pinged the ball about and were quick to fire it into the danger area. Yet, when feeling too comfortable while playing out from the back, City pounced again. Kevin Danso’s loose pass from his area was nabbed by Ndiaye and the ball went instantly to Haaland near the penalty spot. Semenyo took over, tapped to Cherki and the Frenchman made space and threaded in.
That made it 2-1 to City with half an hour gone. Three minutes later a breathless opening period had another twist. Le Fée slipped in Thomas Meunier, the wide right forward crossed, and Brobbey could not miss. Following a prolonged video assistant referee check Sunderland’s second stood: Brobbey and Meunier being offside was the question and it appeared marginal.
Again, Maresca’s side suffered due to naivety. And, again, they roved upfield and breached their visitors’ rearguard. This time Cherki hit Marc Guéhi with a chip from the right that provoked a scramble in Sunderland’s area. The ball came out to Semenyo who powered in to restore City’s lead.
By the interval it should have been 4-2 but the normally lethal Haaland splayed wide after Ndiaye teed him up. The last bit of action had a mis-hit Brobbey effort nearly chipping Donnarumma who needed his 6ft 5in to tip over.
Maresca wanted the match slowed down in the second half, with the ball at City feet. Yet still holes were punched in them as when Elliot Anderson was caught upfield and Noah Sadiki ran into space and ballooned over.
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Another goal looked to be needed because Sunderland were relentless. Cherki’s curving pass right to Ndiaye created a chance for the fourth but the winger’s touch was clumsy. Better was Semenyo’s decisiveness that made it 4-2. Cherki’s pass caused Nordi Mukiele a problem, the ball went to City’s Ghanaian international, and he arrowed into the far right corner.
Could City breathe? No was the answer. Anderson may have been lucky not to concede a penalty when the ball struck a hand in the area – another indication of City’s scruffiness: afterwards Le Bris stated this should have been a penalty, and you could see why.
Brobbey’s third arrived when Granit Xhaka delivered from the right, Nilson Angulo helped the ball on, and the Dutchman converted.
This was seven goals before the hour mark in what was a basketball-like affair packed with incident that, next, included Haaland’s late fifth.
Jérémy Doku, on for Ndiaye, had Josko Gvardiol slaloming along the left, the defender’s cross to the far post slid beyond Roefs by the Norwegian. Initially flagged as offside, the VAR overturned the assistant referee’s call and that was 5-3 – the end of the scoring on an afternoon that will not be forgotten soon.
“Collectively we did what we could, fought together and got the three points,” Semenyo said. It also made it five wins from five for last season’s runners-up who, for now, are back in the box seat.
