Manchester City 2-0 Everton: Haaland double sends Guardiola's team top
Everton toiled and tussled at the Etihad Stadium, but Erling Haaland's quality shone through as Manchester City won 2-0.
Erling Haaland's sensational form continued as his double saw Manchester City beat Everton 2-0 and surge into top spot in the Premier League.
With Arsenal not in action until later on Saturday, and Liverpool playing against Manchester United on Sunday, City took the chance to apply the pressure to their title rivals.
However, Pep Guardiola's side did not have it all their own way at the Etihad Stadium, where Beto passed up a huge chance for Everton early on.
Set up by the impressive Iliman Ndiaye, Beto somehow failed to score with the goal at his mercy.
The most involvement Haaland had in the first half was when his challenge forced Jake O'Brien into heading against his own crossbar, while Ndiaye stung Gianluigi Donnarumma's palms at the other end before a glut of half-chances for City before the break.
But Haaland took his first chance when it came in the 58th minute, planting a towering header home from Nico O'Reilly's floated centre.
Haaland made it 2-0 five minutes later, with a deflected, low finish doing for Jordan Pickford, who twice denied the Norway international his hat-trick in second-half stoppage time, as City extended their unbeaten run against Everton in the top tier to 17 games.
Data Debrief: Haaland closes in on a century
Haaland has now plundered 96 Premier League goals in just 105 games. He is all set to smash the record, set by Alan Shearer in the 1995-96 campaign, for the quickest player to a century of goals in the competition (124 appearances).
The 25-year-old is already on 11 top-flight goals this season. It is just the third instance in Premier League history of a player hitting 10+ goals across the opening eight games of a campaign, and Haaland has been responsible for all of those (also doing so in 2022-23 and 2024-25).
David Moyes will no doubt point to that huge chance missed by Beto, who also lashed wide when one-v-one just after the half-hour mark, only to be flagged offside, though Everton mustered just five attempts in total with only one on target, and if not for Pickford's reactions, Haaland would have done more damage late on, as City rounded off with 2.4 expected goals from their 19 shots.
Moyes has lost each of his last eight Premier League away games against City, last avoiding defeat at the Etihad with Everton in December 2012. Only against Liverpool (ongoing run of 10) has he ever endured a longer losing run away from home against any side in the competition.
