Man City made it seven wins from seven in the Premier League with a 3-2 victory over Ipswich Town at the Etihad Stadium, though Zian Flemming's late penalty made the finish more nervous than the afternoon had promised.
Erling Haaland scored twice, either side of half-time, and Phil Foden also found the net as City stayed top of the table.
The decisive moments
Foden gave City the lead in the 19th minute, set up by Jérémy Doku. Ipswich were level within two minutes. Daizen Maeda scored in the 21st minute, with Abdoul Ouattara providing the assist.
Haaland restored City's lead in the 34th minute from a Mateo Kovacic assist. The third goal came in the 69th minute, when Haaland scored again, this time created by Iliman Ndiaye.
Ouattara was booked in the 73rd minute. Flemming then converted a penalty in the 90th minute to make it 3-2. Josko Gvardiol (90+7) and Leif Davis (90+12) were both booked in a long period of added time, but City held on.
What the numbers say
The statistics show a clear City advantage. They had 70% of the possession to Ipswich's 30% and outshot the visitors 19 to 8.
- Shots on target: City 6, Ipswich 3
- Shots off target: City 7, Ipswich 5
- Blocked shots: City 6, Ipswich 0
- Corners: City 2, Ipswich 3
- Fouls: City 8, Ipswich 16
- Offsides: City 2, Ipswich 5
Ipswich committed twice as many fouls as City and were caught offside more often, but they still created enough to score twice. Expected goals data via Fantasy Premier League, which measures the quality of chances created, had City averaging 1.96 per game this season and Ipswich conceding 1.86 per game. Both figures are from six games with data.
The scoreline fits the visitors' defensive record. Ipswich came into the game conceding 2.14 goals per game and had yet to keep a clean sheet. City had scored 2.71 per game.
What it means
City are top with 21 points from seven games and a goal difference of +12. They have won all seven matches. Their league run now stretches across Crystal Palace (4-1), Coventry City (1-0), Man Utd (1-0), Sunderland (5-3) and Liverpool (3-0), before this win.
Ipswich are 10th with nine points from seven games and a goal difference of -4. They had lost three of their previous five league matches, including a 5-2 defeat at Man Utd and a 2-0 home loss to Liverpool. This was another defeat, but they scored twice against the league leaders. City had beaten them 4-1 and 6-0 in their last two meetings.
MFF's match model had predicted a 2-0 City win, giving the hosts a 76% chance of victory. City did win, but the scoreline was wrong.
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