Haaland seals Manchester City’s 5-3 win over Sunderland after wild comeback
Manchester City will head into the international break three points clear at the Premier League summit after surviving Sunderland’s extraordinary fightback in a 5-3 win at the Etihad Stadium.
Erling Haaland struck in the 81st minute to finally settle a wild contest after Brian Brobbey’s first Sunderland goals came as a losing hat-trick. City have now won five successive league matches following their Community Shield defeat by Arsenal.
A chaotic afternoon at the Etihad
- Enzo Fernández opened the scoring for City, but Brobbey quickly brought Sunderland level.
- Rayan Cherki restored the home side’s advantage before Brobbey again found an equaliser in a breathless first half.
- Antoine Semenyo sent City into the interval ahead at 3-2.
- Sunderland appealed for a penalty with the score at 3-2 when Elliot Anderson appeared to handle inside the area, but no spot-kick was awarded.
- Semenyo added his second goal to stretch City’s lead, only for Brobbey to complete his treble soon afterwards.
- Haaland’s late finish gave City the breathing room they needed and sealed the 5-3 result.
Brobbey, 24, became only the sixth player to score a Premier League hat-trick for a side that still lost. His three goals ended a four-match wait for his first of the campaign.
Maresca: City found a way through
Enzo Maresca said he would rather have taken a calmer 1-0 victory, but had anticipated a severe examination from an aggressive Sunderland side with threats in open play, at set-pieces and through Brobbey.
The City boss accepted that at least two of Sunderland’s goals had come too easily from his team’s perspective. He said possession can help manage games, but opponents also have the ability to disrupt control and force a different type of contest.
Maresca pointed to Sunderland’s recent high-scoring meeting with Arsenal as evidence of their approach. He also viewed the latest win as another useful test in a varied opening to the season.
City have won their first Champions League fixture and defeated Norwich in the Carabao Cup alongside their league run. Maresca noted that his side have faced different challenges across seven competitive matches, including playing with 10 men against Manchester United and recovering from 1-0 down against Bournemouth.
Brobbey and Sunderland take positives
Regis Le Bris said Sunderland had never been alarmed by Brobbey’s early lack of goals. The forward had shown encouraging signs in training and in both Premier League and Europa League appearances, while his link-up with team-mates had continued to improve.
Le Bris said the breakthrough had simply been a matter of time and praised Brobbey’s response after a difficult spell without scoring.
Sunderland left empty-handed but created enough opportunities to believe they could have added two or three more goals. Le Bris said his players could be proud of their performance against one of Europe’s leading teams, while stressing that even a half-chance can be punished at this level.
