Erling Haaland once again proved why he is one of world football’s most feared strikers, netting twice to lead Manchester City to a 3-1 win over Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday. The result lifted Pep Guardiola’s men into second place in the Premier League standings, just six points behind leaders Arsenal.
The Norwegian striker’s brace came in a blistering first half that showcased his trademark power, pace, and composure. Haaland, who now leads the league with 13 goals in 10 matches, opened the scoring in the 17th minute. After heading the ball forward just past halfway, he bulldozed through the Bournemouth defence before calmly sliding his shot past goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic.
Bournemouth, enjoying a fine run of form before this match, responded quickly. Tyler Adams capitalized on a rare mistake by City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, whose attempted punch fell kindly for Adams to stab home from close range in the 25th minute. Although City protested for a foul, a VAR review confirmed the goal, bringing the visitors level.
However, parity was short-lived. Just eight minutes later, Haaland restored City’s advantage, using his strength to break free of his markers before rounding Petrovic and finishing neatly from a tight angle. It was another display of Haaland’s remarkable consistency in front of goal, marking his fourth consecutive home game with multiple goals—an achievement matched only by Luis Suárez and Robbie Fowler in Premier League history.
City tightened their grip on the game in the second half when young midfielder Nico O’Reilly made it 3-1 in the 60th minute. The 19-year-old struck confidently through the legs of defender Marcos Senesi after being set up by Phil Foden.
“We played really good,” Guardiola said after the match. “We had to be so coordinated with the pressing and with our defending. They played really good and of course again Erling was decisive.”
Haaland, who now boasts 26 goals in 16 appearances for club and country this season, downplayed his heroics. “I try to help the team to win. That is my goal,” he told Sky Sports. When asked about being substituted before completing his hat-trick, he laughed: “There were probably a few fantasy managers who were not so happy.”
Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola remained upbeat despite the defeat. “It was not a bad performance by us,” he said. “Even when they scored the first goal we were controlling a lot. You have to accept the way we play, there are risks.”
City dominated with 15 shots to Bournemouth’s eight, and although they pushed for a fourth late on, the three points were enough to reaffirm their title credentials.
