Crystal Palace 2-4 Man City: Kevin de Bruyne shines as defending champions maintain title challenge - BBC Sport
Close menu
Premier League
Crystal PalaceCrystal Palace2Man CityManchester City4

Crystal Palace 2-4 Man City: Kevin de Bruyne shines as defending champions maintain title challenge

By Emma SandersBBC Sport

Last updated on .From the section Premier Leaguecomments1487

Kevin de Bruyne celebrates against Crystal Palace
Kevin de Bruyne has now scored four goals in 16 appearances against Crystal Palace in the Premier League

Manchester City maintained their title challenge in ruthless fashion as "incredible" Kevin de Bruyne claimed his 100th goal for the club in a comeback victory at Crystal Palace.

In an entertaining encounter, Palace stunned City with an early opener from Jean-Philippe Mateta, before De Bruyne's wonderful finish pulled the visitors level in the first half.

Mateta raced on to a pass from Adam Wharton and slotted the ball inside the far corner in only the third minute as noise erupted from the stands at Selhurst Park.

But De Bruyne's curling effort was a sublime equaliser just 10 minutes later and, with a starring role for the rest of the game, City boss Pep Guardiola said their success was thanks to his "incredible" qualities.

"For many years he has been one of the best players for our club," Guardiola told BBC Sport.

"What he has done in England has been unbelievable. Many goals, assists and consistency. We had four or five months without him and now we need him at the end of the season.

"I think he likes to score goals but I don't know if he enjoys it more to make an assist. He is so generous with that - but he has to continue."

Palace's Jordan Ayew also struck the crossbar as Oliver Glasner's side showed plenty of attacking threat but they were undone in the second half.

Having earlier made a crucial stop to deny Erling Haaland finishing off a clever De Bruyne through-ball, Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson was unable to block Rico Lewis' strike within two minutes of the second half.

The defending champions then took control as De Bruyne teed up Haaland again and this time the Norwegian striker finished, before the Belgian added a fourth - marking his century of goals for City since joining in 2015 - with a ferocious first-time shot.

Substitute Odsonne Edouard slotted in a late consolation for Palace but this was another crucial victory for Guardiola's side in an enthralling three-way title race.

City moved level on points with Liverpool, who visit Manchester United on Sunday, but Arsenal lead the table by a point after their 3-0 win at Brighton.

Foden rested but De Bruyne steps up for City

With one eye on Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final tie against Real Madrid, Guardiola made four changes to the City side, with Phil Foden dropped to the bench just days after scoring a hat-trick in a 4-1 win over Aston Villa.

But in came De Bruyne and Haaland - and both made their mark to fuel City's charge for an unprecedented fourth successive league title.

Palace, still finding their feet under new boss Glasner, showed plenty of positive signs, particularly in the first half as their defensive resilience and organisation kept the visitors at bay.

They were boosted by the return of Michael Olise off the bench after missing seven games through injury, and the lively Edouard went close before he squeezed home a nice close-range finish four minutes from time.

"I'm not satisfied with the result but I saw many positive things in our performance," said Glasner.

"When we lose 4-2, I don't like to talk about positive things, but in phases of the game we could compete. It shows we are able to create chances - but of course when you concede four goals, you lose."

City were too strong in the end and, while Guardiola was able to rest Foden and Bernardo Silva, De Bruyne stepped up to show his quality and claim his landmark goal after an injury-plagued season.

In another boost, defender John Stones managed to play the full match upon his return after being injured on England duty.

Palace have proved a tough opponent for City in the past - they came from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 at the Etihad in December - so this was a vital victory for Guardiola's side to keep up the pressure on their rivals.

Player of the match

De BruyneKevin De Bruyne

with an average of 7.50

Crystal Palace

  1. Squad number30Player nameHenderson
    Average rating

    6.73

  2. Squad number14Player nameMateta
    Average rating

    6.56

  3. Squad number20Player nameA Wharton
    Average rating

    6.33

  4. Squad number7Player nameOlise
    Average rating

    6.25

  5. Squad number22Player nameÉdouard
    Average rating

    6.18

  6. Squad number9Player nameJ Ayew
    Average rating

    6.03

  7. Squad number2Player nameWard
    Average rating

    6.01

  8. Squad number10Player nameEze
    Average rating

    5.97

  9. Squad number8Player nameLerma
    Average rating

    5.94

  10. Squad number12Player nameMuñoz
    Average rating

    5.94

  11. Squad number16Player nameAndersen
    Average rating

    5.90

  12. Squad number15Player nameSchlupp
    Average rating

    5.70

  13. Squad number19Player nameHughes
    Average rating

    5.69

  14. Squad number3Player nameMitchell
    Average rating

    5.59

  15. Squad number17Player nameClyne
    Average rating

    5.50

  16. Squad number29Player nameAhamada
    Average rating

    5.50

Manchester City

  1. Squad number17Player nameDe Bruyne
    Average rating

    7.50

  2. Squad number25Player nameAkanji
    Average rating

    6.99

  3. Squad number5Player nameStones
    Average rating

    6.81

  4. Squad number20Player nameBernardo Silva
    Average rating

    6.74

  5. Squad number18Player nameOrtega
    Average rating

    6.72

  6. Squad number8Player nameKovacic
    Average rating

    6.64

  7. Squad number3Player nameRúben Dias
    Average rating

    6.62

  8. Squad number27Player nameMatheus Nunes
    Average rating

    6.49

  9. Squad number24Player nameGvardiol
    Average rating

    6.35

  10. Squad number82Player nameLewis
    Average rating

    5.95

  11. Squad number16Player nameRodri
    Average rating

    5.88

  12. Squad number19Player nameÁlvarez
    Average rating

    5.66

  13. Squad number10Player nameGrealish
    Average rating

    5.56

  14. Squad number9Player nameHaaland
    Average rating

    5.48

  15. Squad number52Player nameBobb
    Average rating

    5.35

Line-ups

Crystal Palace

Formation 3-4-3

  • 30Henderson
  • 2Ward
  • 16Andersen
  • 8Lerma
  • 12Muñoz
  • 20A Wharton
  • 19HughesSubstituted forAhamadaat 82'minutes
  • 3MitchellSubstituted forClyneat 75'minutes
  • 9J AyewSubstituted forOliseat 74'minutes
  • 14MatetaBooked at 63minsSubstituted forÉdouardat 74'minutes
  • 10EzeSubstituted forSchluppat 64'minutes

Substitutes

  • 5Tomkins
  • 7Olise
  • 15Schlupp
  • 17Clyne
  • 22Édouard
  • 29Ahamada
  • 31Matthews
  • 52Ozoh
  • 55Umeh-Chibueze

Man City

Formation 3-2-4-1

  • 18Ortega
  • 24GvardiolBooked at 45minsSubstituted forAkanjiat 45'minutes
  • 5Stones
  • 3Rúben Dias
  • 16RodriSubstituted forKovacicat 74'minutes
  • 19ÁlvarezSubstituted forNunesat 74'minutes
  • 17De BruyneSubstituted forBernardo Silvaat 90+3'minutes
  • 82Lewis
  • 52Bobb
  • 10Grealish
  • 9Haaland

Substitutes

  • 8Kovacic
  • 11Doku
  • 20Bernardo Silva
  • 21Gómez
  • 25Akanji
  • 27Nunes
  • 31Ederson
  • 47Foden
  • 76Susoho
Referee:
Paul Tierney
Attendance:
25,132

Match Stats

Home TeamCrystal PalaceAway TeamMan City
Possession
Home24%
Away76%
Shots
Home7
Away18
Shots on Target
Home4
Away8
Corners
Home2
Away9
Fouls
Home13
Away3

Live Text

  1. Post update

    Match ends, Crystal Palace 2, Manchester City 4.

  2. Full Time

    Second Half ends, Crystal Palace 2, Manchester City 4.

  3. Post update

    Attempt missed. Jack Grealish (Manchester City) right footed shot from the left side of the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Matheus Nunes.

  4. Post update

    Bernardo Silva (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the attacking half.

  5. Post update

    Foul by Joel Ward (Crystal Palace).

  6. Post update

    Delay over. They are ready to continue.

  7. Post update

    Delay in match because of an injury Jefferson Lerma (Crystal Palace).

  8. Post update

    Rico Lewis (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

  9. Post update

    Foul by Naouirou Ahamada (Crystal Palace).

  10. Substitution

    Substitution, Manchester City. Bernardo Silva replaces Kevin De Bruyne.

  11. Post update

    Corner, Manchester City. Conceded by Jefferson Lerma.

  12. Post update

    Attempt saved. Naouirou Ahamada (Crystal Palace) right footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Michael Olise.

  13. Post update

    Corner, Crystal Palace. Conceded by Oscar Bobb.

  14. Goal!

    Goal! Crystal Palace 2, Manchester City 4. Odsonne Édouard (Crystal Palace) right footed shot from very close range to the centre of the goal. Assisted by Jeffrey Schlupp with a cross.

  15. Post update

    Rúben Dias (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the attacking half.

  16. Post update

    Foul by Odsonne Édouard (Crystal Palace).

  17. Post update

    Rico Lewis (Manchester City) wins a free kick on the right wing.

  18. Post update

    Foul by Jefferson Lerma (Crystal Palace).

  19. Post update

    Manuel Akanji (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

  20. Post update

    Foul by Michael Olise (Crystal Palace).

Page 1 of 5
Navigate to the last page

Comments

Join the conversation

These comments are now closed.

1487 comments

  • Comment posted by POB, at 14:40 6 Apr

    "Arsenal host Brentford later on Saturday". That'll be a surprise for Villa, who were expecting the Bees this afternoon, and for Brighton, who were expecting to play Arsenal in a 5:30 kick off.

  • Comment posted by richard48, at 14:37 6 Apr

    The highlight of the game for me was when the camera went to Ederson sitting on the bench he was picking his nose! A few minutes later the camera again went to Ederson and showed him gobbing a load of spit on the ground! The female commentator said “please don’t show Ederson again!”🤣

    • Reply posted by PFD, at 14:39 6 Apr

      PFD replied:
      The managers awful habits rubbing off on his players.

  • Comment posted by Lemon Difficult , at 14:32 6 Apr

    Great support from the travelling Man City fans.

    • Reply posted by Arken, at 14:38 6 Apr

      Arken replied:
      Half of them travelled from Woking!

  • Comment posted by conradk, at 14:35 6 Apr

    Chelsea should take a look at this De Bruyne guy, he's not half bad.

    • Reply posted by john, at 14:38 6 Apr

      john replied:
      One hit wonder Salah available soon.

  • Comment posted by Bear_Necessities, at 16:02 6 Apr

    Grealish only given a 5.56 rating after being the positive factor in all four goals has convinced me most football fans are blind and don't watch most of the game.

    • Reply posted by BigHelen, at 16:09 6 Apr

      BigHelen replied:
      Some can’t be happy to be truthful. Grealish is a good player.

  • Comment posted by chewytoffee, at 14:17 6 Apr

    Don’t care what anyone says - this is the most fascinating title battle the PL has had for a long time and great to see 3 teams battle it out.

    • Reply posted by Mate, at 14:32 6 Apr

      Mate replied:
      It's a shame more teams in the premier league were not like the top 3! Meant to a big 6 or 7, but seems like only a big 3

  • Comment posted by Gadster, at 14:36 6 Apr

    The standard of commentating on TNT is atrocious. The commentator asking Lewis how important it is to keep winning matches at the end, needs to take serious stock and ask how stupid a question that was. However, c’mon City - history beckons.

    • Reply posted by Terry , at 14:41 6 Apr

      Terry replied:
      And so does the league over 115 allegations??????

  • Comment posted by Blue Haven, at 14:41 6 Apr

    Superb away performance from the reigning World, European & Premier League champions! Take a bow KDB👏

  • Comment posted by jon, at 14:41 6 Apr

    At least Palace tried unlike Arsenal 🫣🤓

    • Reply posted by yep, at 14:57 6 Apr

      yep replied:
      We nullified your attack and you had one shot on target at home.

  • Comment posted by azuremooncity, at 15:30 6 Apr

    How the hell is Grealish getting a rating of 5.56 and City's third worst player? Do people actually watch the game? He got 2 assists and had a big part in all 4 goals. Just shows that when people have a narrative it makes no difference to how somebody plays they will always get stick. It's a flawed scoring system.

    • Reply posted by kingkladze, at 15:47 6 Apr

      kingkladze replied:
      always the same on these HYS the armchair warriors mark down even though they have no interest in city

  • Comment posted by Long Cold Winter, at 14:37 6 Apr

    Absolutely stunning! 🤩

    Kevin De Bruyne returns to the starting XI with a bang! 

  • Comment posted by Knighton Palace, at 14:33 6 Apr

    Sounds funny but as a Palace fan sort of pleased as before the game I was thinking a much worse score !

    • Reply posted by CPFC85, at 14:38 6 Apr

      CPFC85 replied:
      Me too. I like what Glasner is doing. I can’t wait to see what we can do next season with a fully fit squad.

  • Comment posted by Landlova, at 14:35 6 Apr

    Great win for City and not even used Foden, what a powerful squad

  • Comment posted by pedrocity5, at 15:40 6 Apr

    City rest De Bruyne and Foden steps up with a hatrick against Villa. Foden is rested against Palace and in steps KDB with 2 superb goals. Two wonderful players.

    • Reply posted by kennycanuck, at 16:51 6 Apr

      kennycanuck replied:
      Pep knows how to manage a team's workload.
      Best there is.

  • Comment posted by Torys Nicked Dads Pension, at 15:30 6 Apr

    Is spitting acceptable behavior if you on the bench or spectator? Seems very unnecessary

    • Reply posted by colinnicholson, at 15:35 6 Apr

      colinnicholson replied:
      Spot on…Gross

  • Comment posted by Haz, at 14:51 6 Apr

    City could only give it away today. But drink it in - appreciate the best football the Prem has ever seen in your lifetime. Every year, they come back motivated. What a side!!!