Manchester City produced a breathtaking comeback on Saturday afternoon, overturning a two-goal deficit to hammer Crystal Palace 5-2 in a thrilling Premier League encounter at the Etihad Stadium.
The reigning champions were stunned early as Crystal Palace raced into a 2-0 lead within the first 21 minutes, threatening one of the biggest upsets of the season. Eberechi Eze opened the scoring in the 8th minute, latching onto a precise pass from Ismaila Sarr before rifling a shot past Ederson. Thirteen minutes later, Chris Richards doubled the visitors’ lead, rising highest to head home a powerful effort from a corner, leaving the City crowd in stunned silence.
However, the silence didn’t last long.
Manchester City responded with clinical precision, spearheaded by midfield maestro Kevin De Bruyne. The Belgian halved the deficit in the 33rd minute with a sublime free kick that struck the post and rolled in. Just three minutes later, Omar Marmoush capitalised on a defensive scramble to draw City level at 2-2.
Palace appeared to restore their lead before the break when Eze found the back of the net again, but the goal was disallowed for offside — a controversial call that halted Palace’s momentum.
The second half was all City.
Two minutes after the restart, Mateo Kovacic fired the hosts ahead with a thunderous long-range strike into the bottom corner. James McAtee extended the lead in the 56th minute, finishing coolly after goalkeeper Ederson turned playmaker with a superb long pass.
Teenager Nico O’Reilly completed the comeback in the 79th minute, his deflected effort leaving Sam Johnstone wrong-footed and sealing an emphatic 5-2 victory for the champions.
The win reinforces Manchester City’s title credentials and underlines their resilience, while Crystal Palace are left to rue what might have been after a promising start.
FULL-TIME: Manchester City 5 – 2 Crystal Palace
