Haaland scores double as City maintain perfect start

Erling Haaland starred with a double as Premier League leaders Manchester City beat Ipswich 3-2, while Liverpool came from behind to seal a 2-1 win at Brentford on Saturday.

They have made a perfect start, with seven successive league victories marking their best opening to a Premier League season.

City sit six points clear of champions Arsenal.

Second-placed Arsenal can close the gap with a win at Nottingham Forest on Sunday.

Enzo Maresca’s side are in fine form after bouncing back from their midweek loss to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.

There was a defiant mood at the Etihad Stadium, where City fans booed the Premier League anthem before kick-off, while thousands waved inflatable bananas to underline their commitment to the club regardless of their current plight.

The toy bananas were taken to the matches by City supporters to lighten the mood when the team was struggling during the late 1980s.

Chanting “you’re down with the City” to their Ipswich counterparts, City’s fans were in self-deprecating mood.

Phil Foden put Maresca’s men ahead in the 19th minute with a sharp turn and finish after Jeremy Doku’s incisive run prised open the Ipswich defence.

Foden’s first goal this season was followed by an Ipswich equaliser in the 21st minute when Daizen Maeda evaded Marc Guehi to fire home.

Haaland restored City’s lead in the 34th minute with a pin-point header from Mateo Kovacic’s cross.

Haaland killed off Ipswich in the 69th minute, sprinting onto Iliman Ndiaye’s pass and steering his shot past Ipswich goalkeeper Christian Walton.

It was the Norway striker’s 12th goal in his last eight City appearances.

Zian Flemming’s 90th-minute penalty, awarded for a foul by Guehi, set up a tense finale but City held on.

In west London, Liverpool were stunned when Brentford defender Keane Lewis-Potter looped a header past Alisson Becker from Igor Thiago’s cross in the 44th minute.

But the Bees were reduced to 10 men in first half stoppage-time after Yehor Yarmolyuk’s head made contact with Jeremy Jacquet’s face while they waited for a corner.

Liverpool lost Dominik Szoboszlai and Jeremie Frimpong to injuries, but still made their numerical advantage count in the 62nd minute.

Victor Munoz cut inside and slotted a composed equaliser past Brentford’s former Liverpool keeper Caoimhin Kelleher.

Alexander Isak blasted Liverpool’s winner in the 70th minute after Barcola teed up the Sweden striker for his fifth goal this term.

Brentford finished with nine men following Vitaly Janelt’s second booking in stoppage-time.

Beaten by City in their previous league game, Liverpool are up to fifth place after inflicting Brentford’s first league defeat of the season.

Chelsea goalkeeper Emi Martinez suffered a concussion after his collision with Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite and was taken to hospital for “precautionary tests”, manager Xabi Alonso said after their 2-0 Premier League victory.

Pedro Neto’s double at the Hill Dickinson Stadium ended Everton’s unbeaten start to the league season but Chelsea’s victory was overshadowed by the lengthy injury stoppage in the second half.

Martinez and Branthwaite came together when Everton’s Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall whipped a free kick into the box and although the defender was back on his feet after treatment, the Argentina goalkeeper required treatment from paramedics.

The 34-year-old was eventually strapped to a stretcher and carried off the field before being taken to hospital.

“It was a concussion but beyond that I don’t know. I have only seen one clip of the incident, so we need to wait,” Alonso said. “What we know is that he left the stadium conscious and right now he is in hospital doing precautionary tests. We need to wait. Hopefully it won’t be too bad but we need to wait.”

Martinez’s injury forced Alonso to give Mike Penders his Premier League debut and the 21-year-old keeper helped Chelsea keep their first clean sheet in the league since January.

Fulham won for the first time in the league this season as Alex Iwobi’s 33rd-minute goal clinched a 1-0 victory against Hull at Craven Cottage.

Alvaro Arbeloa’s side moved out of the relegation zone despite having Ryan Sessegnon sent off for a crude lunge on Robinio Vaz in the final minutes.

Agencies