Erling Haaland has scored four goals in two games this season, including a hat-trick as Manchester City defeated Ipswich Town 4-1 at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday evening.
Seven minutes into the game, the newly-promoted Ipswich Town took an unlikely lead when midfielder Sammie Szmodics slotted Ben Johnson’s pass through the legs of goalkeeper Ederson, marking Ipswich’s first-ever Premier League goal.
However, Man City responded quickly, equalising in the 12th minute when Haaland scored from the penalty spot after a foul by Leif Davis on Savio inside the box. Two minutes later, the winger assisted Kevin De Bruyne, who put City ahead for the first time in the match.
Haaland extended City’s lead in the 16th minute with his second goal. The Norwegian forward raced behind the Ipswich defence to meet De Bruyne’s cross and placed the ball past goalkeeper Arijanet Muric.
The hosts had to wait until the 88th minute to score again. Haaland capitalized on a scrappy situation on the edge of the Ipswich box, pouncing on a loose ball well shielded by Rico Lewis to complete his hat-trick and seal the victory for City.
Haaland has now scored 67 Premier League goals since joining City in the summer of 2022. He has 29 more goals than second-placed Mohamed Salah in the same period since the start of the 2022/23 season.
Meanwhile, it was a different story for City’s local rivals Manchester United, as they were defeated 2-1 by Brighton at the Falmer Stadium in the first match of matchday two.
Former United forward Danny Welbeck put Brighton ahead two minutes after the half-hour mark despite the Red Devils being the better side. The hosts maintained their lead until the 60th minute when Amad Diallo equalized for Erik ten Hag’s side.
However, United fell to another late goal as Joao Pedro headed Simon Adingra’s cross into an empty net, giving Brighton a late winner. Ten Hag has now lost four out of five league games against Brighton as Manchester United manager.
In other matches, Crystal Palace lost 2-0 at home to West Ham, Fulham defeated Leicester City 2-1 with Alex Iwobi scoring the late winner, Nottingham Forest won 1-0 on the road against Southampton, and Tottenham thrashed Everton 4-0.
Full-time results:
Manchester City 4-1 Ipswich Town
Brighton 2-1 Manchester United
Fulham 2-1 Leicester City
Southampton 0-1 Nottingham Forest
Tottenham 4-0 Everton
Crystal Palace 0-2 West Ham
