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<\/p>\nManchester City took on Palermo in their final pre-season friendly and they earned a 3-0 win over their City Football Group opponents<\/p>\n
Simon is the MEN’s chief Manchester City writer. He joined the MEN sport desk in 2013 and has covered City home and away since 2016, reporting on Pep Guardiola’s time at the club.<\/p>\n
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John Stones and Erling Haaland<\/p>\n
Manchester City beat Palermo 3-0 as they prepare for their first Premier League game with Wolves. Erling Haaland broke the deadlock in the first half before two goals from Tijjani Reijnders put the game beyond their Italian hosts.<\/p>\n
Pep Guardiola gave a first start to James Trafford and John Stones started for the first time in six months, before the manager made 10 changes at half-time and completed the set by replacing Haaland for youngster Divine Mukasa on the hour mark.<\/p>\n
City survived a few defensive scares to pick up a clean sheet as well as a win and will look to build their rhythm for next Saturday at Molineux. Here are the player ratings from the Manchester Evening News.<\/p>\n
Trafford: Fluffed his lines early with a clearance that was charged down but safe hands after that with plenty of catching practise. 6<\/p>\n
Lewis: Regularly drove up the pitch, working well with Cherki and Bobb before playing the key assist for Haaland. 8<\/p>\n
Khusanov: Some last-ditch slide tackles that bailed his team out. No nonsense at times but needed to be and he looked solid. 7<\/p>\n
Stones: Good to see him back on the pitch and looking classy. He could form a strong pairing with Lewis if he can stay fit. 7<\/p>\n
Ait-Nouri: A few charges forward into opposition territory but too many unforced errors that sent City backwards. 5<\/p>\n
Gonzalez: A lot of pressure on his shoulders with Rodri not fully fit and he was okay, not really leading the game but also frustrated by some of the sloppy play around him. 6<\/p>\n
O’Reilly: A reminder of some of the different options to cover Rodri but he was not smart on the ball and Guardiola had to have words on several occasions. 5<\/p>\n
Bobb: Beat his man on a number of occasions while being subjected to some overly physical marking. The intent was promising. 7<\/p>\n
Cherki: Looked to get on the ball and create whenever he could, drifting towards the right where Bobb lurked. Encouraging. 7<\/p>\n
Marmoush: Wasn’t involved enough, struggling to get on the ball and when he did there wasn’t enough to it. 5<\/p>\n
Haaland: Not involved much either but he doesn’t need to be to score, as he did in the first half. 6<\/p>\n
Substitutes<\/p>\n
Ederson (for Trafford, 46) A few shaky moments for the defence and his collision with Dias looked clumsy. 5<\/p>\n
Nunes (for Lewis, 46) Couldn’t really get forward as he likes to do, but was solid defensively. 6<\/p>\n
Akanji (for Stones, 46) A few misplaced passes in bad areas that put City into trouble. 5<\/p>\n
Dias (for Khusanov, 46) There wasn’t anything terrible, it just wasn’t particularly convincing and he and Ederson took each other out. 5<\/p>\n
Ake (for Ait-Nouri, 46) Had the best of his duel overall and helped push the team forward. 6<\/p>\n
Gundogan (for Gonzalez, 46) Back in the No.6 and should have had an assist with a delicious through ball. 7<\/p>\n
Silva (for O’Reilly, 46) Easy does it from Silva, making sure City kept control of the game with an understated performance. 6<\/p>\n
Reijnders (for Cherki, 46) Looks the pick of the summer signings so far, able to carry a threat in attack while knowing when to push forward. 8<\/p>\n
Savinho (for Bobb, 46) Looked good generally but squandered a really good chance. 7<\/p>\n
Doku (for Marmoush, 46) Occasionally looked threatening on the ball but never really turned it into anything. 6<\/p>\n
Mukasa (for Haaland, 60) Some bright runs and looked comfortable in the team, setting up Reijnders for the third. 7<\/p>\n
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KICK OFF – Man City pre-season guide 2025\/26<\/p>\n
The countdown is on to the 2025\/26 Premier League campaign – and our pre-season guide<\/a> is the ideal way to prepare for the action ahead.<\/p>\n As well as in-depth analysis and opinion on your club, we turn the spotlight on every team battling for top-flight glory – or simply survival in the toughest league in the world!<\/p>\n Also full fixtures guide so you don’t miss a game in what is set to be a thrilling season.<\/p>\n