Manchester City 3-1 Bournemouth - 5 Talking Points, Premier League 2018/19
Manchester City hosted Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium as Pep Guardiola's side aimed to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League table to five points. They did just that, courtesy of a 3-1 win over the Cherries in a game where the likes of David Silva and Sergio Aguero were rested by Guardiola.
Bernardo Silva opened the scoring when he lashed in a powerful shot after Leroy Sane had run in behind the defence. But City slacked off after taking the lead and Bournemouth capitalised, equalising after Callum Wilson headed home from Trevor Francis' cross.
Raheem Sterling restored City's lead in the second half when he fired a rebound off Asmir Begovic into the roof of the net. Ilkay Gundogan made the game safe ten minutes from time when he slotted from Leroy Sane's low cross.
The win meant that City have dropped just two points in the league this season. Meanwhile, Bournemouth slipped to ninth in the table due to their loss.
Here are the main talking points from the game.
#1 Bournemouth can take heart from the game despite the defeat
The 3-1 scoreline may portray it as a straightforward win for City, but that was not the case. Bournemouth rallied well after conceding the first goal and deservedly broke level when Callum Wilson scored.
Eddie Howe's record at the Etihad Stadium was pretty woeful, so he adopted a conservative approach to rectify that. He deployed a three-man backline to stifle the hosts, and it seemed to be working quite well. City were looking short on attacking inspiration when Bournemouth equalised, before Sterling's goal changed the tide.
Wilson continued his excellent form, and the goal was his seventh this season. Bournemouth currently sit in 9th place after the defeat, but with the quality of football they have produced this season, Howe can be hopeful of claiming a top-half finish.