Manchester City moved three points clear of Liverpool at the top of the Premier League table on Wednesday night after an impressive 5-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers.
It was a victory inspired by the outstanding display of Kevin De Bruyne, who netted four in the West Midlands, with three coming in the first half.
It took just seven minutes for the City star to open the scoring when he latched onto Bernardo Silva’s perfectly weighted ball and placed his shot beyond the outstretched fingers of Jose Sa.
But the lead didn’t last long, with another Belgian midfielder netting only a few minutes after City had taken the lead. This time it was Leandro Dendoncker, who finished off a Wolves breakaway by turning in Pedro Neto’s cross.
Again, it didn’t take long for another goal, with De Bruyne making the most of Sa’s error on 16 minutes and scoring via a left-footed finish after the goalkeeper swiped at the City No.17’s original pass and pushed it back into his path.
And he wasn’t done there, as De Bruyne netted a third within the opening 24 minutes when he rifled an effort from the edge of the box that flew into the bottom corner to give City a commanding early lead.
After the break, there was only one man who was going to net the visitors’ fourth, with De Bruyne powerfully drilling the ball into the back of the net after another melee at the back for Wolves.
It took until the latter stages for City to add a fifth after a hugely dominant display at Molineux, with Raheem Sterling tapping in from Joao Cancelo’s cross-shot to make it 5-1.
Here’s how we rated the players…
It took just seven minutes for the City star to open the scoring when he latched onto Bernardo Silva’s perfectly weighted ball and placed his shot beyond the outstretched fingers of Jose Sa.
5. Oleksandr Zinchenko- 5
Enjoyed a real battle with Chiquinho throughout the night, one the left-back had mixed fortunes in. But Zinchenko had more joy on the ball and was always an option moving inside from left-back.
6. Rodri- 6
Moved into centre-back after Fernandinho was taken off, but from midfield Rodri put in a solid display. The Spaniard helped the team retain possession and rarely misplaced a pass all night.
7. Ilkay Gundogan- 8
Played a huge role in City’s dominance through the middle, and Gundogan was excellent in the first half. The 31-year-old worked tirelessly and showed an excellent passing range, as well as some well-executed dribbles.
8. Kevin De Bruyne- 9
Where to begin after another masterful display? De Bruyne netted his first City hat-trick and scored the third-fastest treble in Premier League history. All three came via left-footed finishes, although the fourth was tucked home via his right. But it wasn’t just the goals, the former Chelsea man provided some excellent through balls and brought energy through the middle. There was only choice for Man of the Match as De Bruyne scooped the award again.