Five talking points from Man City 4-0 Bournemouth - Haaland involvement, Grealish clash & more

Manchester City made it two wins from two this season, when they beat Bournemouth 4-0 on Saturday.

It was a one-sided encounter for the champions, who were three up at the break thanks to goals from Ilkay Gundogan, Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden, while Jefferson Lerma netted an own-goal in the 79th minute.

While it wasn’t a particularly entertaining game, there were plenty of incidents for fans to dissect on their journeys away from the Etihad. We’ve rounded up five major talking points from the game…

Haaland’s involvement

It was a strange afternoon for City’s marquee summer signing. The Norwegian, making his home debut for the Blues, looked threatening all game and constantly tried to find runs in behind the Bournemouth defence.

He also contributed with an excellent assist for Gundogan’s goal, when he held the ball up and flicked it into the path of the midfielder.

But it was an oddly quiet display from the striker, with Haaland having just eight touches in his 74-minute appearance.

There is certainly still a period of adapting for both the player and the team, and while it would be harsh to say Haaland was poor, City need to find ways of getting the Norwegian on the ball more often.

On-field altercation

After the full-time whistle was blown at the Etihad, there was a coming together between Jack Grealish and Adam Smith, with Joao Cancelo also getting involved.

Smith got booked for a challenge on the latter and could have been shown a yellow card earlier for a push on Grealish.

But even Pep Guardiola wasn’t happy with Smith’s over-exuberant approach, and Grealish made a beeline for the full-back after the match.

Following a heated exchange, the pair were separated with Smith heading down the tunnel, in an incident that was overblown and a tad unnecessary.

Half century for Gundogan

Gundogan began this season at the Etihad as he ended the last one, by getting on the scoresheet. The 31-year-old has now scored 50 goals for the Blues.

Of that half century, 10 were scored last season, while he netted 17 the campaign prior.

Minutes for Stones

John Stones has had a difficult summer and he has struggled for game-time after missing the pre-season trip to America.

As a result, he wasn’t totally fit for the Community Shield or last weekend’s trip to West Ham United.

But the defender was introduced in the latter stages on Saturday, which will be a big boost for Guardiola and should improve his fitness levels.

Debut for Lewis

Guardiola specifically referenced 17-year-old Rico Lewis in Friday’s pre-match press conference, and the defender was introduced in the 82nd minute.

In doing so, Lewis became the fifth-youngest player to ever feature for City in the Premier League, and it’s encouraging for Guardiola given he has limited options at full-back.

Young defenders Luke Mbete and Josh Wilson-Esbrand were unused substitutes.