Crystal Palace made several changes for their first home game of the Premier League season, but Pierre Sage’s side were unable to stop Manchester City from leaving Selhurst Park with the points.
After last weekend’s frustrating 2-0 defeat at Everton, Sage changed things around. Anan Khalaili and Takehiro Tomiyasu were handed their debuts, while Yeremy Pino returned to the starting XI for Crystal Palace.
Despite a bad result, there was a rare encouraging individual display, with Adam Wharton standing out in midfield and Jeremy Pino providing one of the few moments of real attacking quality. But Palace were eventually overwhelmed by City’s blistering attacks.
Crystal Palace player ratings
Here are Crystal Palace player ratings for the Manchester City defeat.
Dean Henderson – 6
Henderson made several important saves and couldn’t be blamed for either of City’s goals. He produced a fine early save from Anderson and later denied Semenyo and Cherki. A busy afternoon for the Palace goalkeeper but ending up conceding a lot.
Takehiro Tomiyasu – 6.5
A solid competitive debut for the new signing. Tomiyasu tried to play out from the back but found it difficult to deal with City’s movement. Still, he stayed composed and put in a generally steady performance.
Chris Richards – 6
Richards had a tough assignment against Erling Haaland and was always going to have his hands full. He battled well, although that was a contest the City striker was likely to win. Richards also should have done better with a first-half header.
Jaydee Canvot – 6
Canvot made an important block to deny Foden’s header. He did little wrong individually but was part of a defence that came under heavy pressure as City took control.
Anan Khalaili – 4.5
A difficult afternoon for the new signing. Khalaili struggled badly against Semenyo, picked up a booking and was eventually substituted. He showed little end product and found his first game one to forget.
Daichi Kamada – 5
Kamada was busy and kept looking to get involved, but he struggled to influence the match. His miscontrol led to Cherki’s first goal. Overall, he was non-existent in the game.
Adam Wharton – 7
Palace’s best outfield player. Wharton showed excellent composure, vision and a terrific range of passing. He was at the heart of most of Palace’s better moments, although even he couldn’t escape City’s dominance later in the game.
Tyrick Mitchell – 6
Tyrick Mitchell was energetic and gave Palace some much-needed pace going forward. He missed a big first-half header but remained the team’s best attacking option in the game. Nketiah’s opportunity from a cross was largely on Tyrick Mitchel.
Eddie Nketiah – 6
Eddie Nketiah started brightly and forced Donnarumma into an early save. The former Arsenal man worked hard with his pressing but gradually faded as Palace struggled to provide him with chances. His missed opportunity early in the second half was costly.
Yeremy Pino – 6.5
One of the more dangerous Palace players. Pino looked capable of creating something whenever he got forward and produced the highlight of the afternoon with his free-kick. The effort struck the bar and went in off Donnarumma for Palace’s only goal.
Jorgen Strand Larsen – 5.5
Larsen worked tirelessly but struggled against the physical presence of Ruben Dias. He had a chance in the first half but couldn’t take it, while another effort went wide from Pino’s cross. On a largely controlled game by Manchester City, he had little service as well to make an impact.
