Manchester City preserved their unbeaten Premier League record this season with a 3-2 victory over Ipswich at the Etihad on Saturday, despite the controversy surrounding the financial sanctions the club is facing. With the result, the Etihad side became only the third team in history to open a Premier League season with seven consecutive wins.
Erling Haaland was the focus of the match, scoring twice to take his tally for the season to eight goals – the highest in the league so far. The Norwegian striker also made history as the fastest player to reach 100 non-penalty goals in the Premier League, doing so in just 139 appearances.
The win over Ipswich comes as Manchester City have just been found to have committed serious breaches of the Premier League's financial rules over nearly a decade. The ruling threatens the club's place in England's top flight, although the club maintains its innocence and has appealed. Earlier, manager Enzo Maresca's side had also suffered a 2-4 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.
The atmosphere in the Etihad stands vividly reflected the fans' defiance. Many supporters brought inflatable bananas – an item tied to happy memories for City fans in the 1980s – and booed the Premier League anthem before kick-off. Some spectators also unfurled banners and chanted slogans in support of the club in its difficult circumstances.
Manager Enzo Maresca – who replaced Pep Guardiola in the summer – believes the off-field difficulties have brought the squad together. He also became the first coach to win his first seven games in charge of a Premier League club. Before Man City, Chelsea (2005) and Liverpool (2019) had similar starts and both went on to win the title.
Nevertheless, the win over Ipswich also left concerns over the squad, as Haaland and substitute Antoine Semenyo were seen limping off after the final whistle. Maresca said Haaland had pain in his foot after a late collision but insisted the striker was not a major concern, while Semenyo's situation could be more serious.
In a simultaneous match, Liverpool came from behind to win 2-1 away at Brentford, who had to play with ten men after Yehor Yarmoliuk's red card in first-half stoppage time. Victor Munoz and Alexander Isak scored in the second half to seal the win for the visitors. However, Liverpool lost two more players to injury as Dominik Szoboszlai and Jeremie Frimpong had to leave the pitch.
Meanwhile, Aston Villa won 1-0 away at Newcastle thanks to a goal from 21-year-old midfielder Johan Manzambi – the Swiss player's third goal in his last four games. Fulham also claimed their first Premier League win of the season by beating Hull 1-0 through Alex Iwobi's 33rd-minute goal, lifting the club off the bottom of the table and easing the pressure on manager Alvaro Arbeloa.
