City outlast Sunderland in 5-3 thriller to stay perfect

Manchester City beat Sunderland 5-3 at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday to stay top of the Premier League with five wins from five, The Guardian.

That is a perfect start. Five played, five won. No other team in England’s top division can match it right now.

Antoine Semenyo led the way for Enzo Maresca’s side. He scored twice, once either side of half-time, to keep City in front during a game that never settled.

He was not alone. Enzo Fernández, Rayan Cherki and Erling Haaland all scored as well. Five goals from four different players tells its own story.

Sunderland refused to fold. They levelled the score at 1-1 and then again at 2-2. Later, trailing by two, they cut the gap to 4-3 and made the closing stages tight.

City needed a big defensive moment too. Rúben Dias produced an acrobatic goalline clearance in the second half to preserve the lead. Without it, this thriller could have swung again.

All three Sunderland goals came from Brian Brobbey. A hat-trick, three goals by one player in a single match, is rare enough. His was the first by a Sunderland player in a Premier League game since Jermain Defoe in 2016, The Guardian.

Haaland had the final word. His goal made it 5-3 and closed the contest. It was his first ever goal against Sunderland.

What makes this stand out is the balance of it. City had the firepower to win. Sunderland had the courage to keep answering back.

For fans, this is the kind of afternoon that sticks. Strangers celebrating together. A newly minted hat-trick hero on the losing side. And a league leader made to earn every point.