Pep Guardiola praised the impact of Jeremy Doku after the summer signing from Rennes scored his first Manchester City goal to help the champions recover to beat West Ham.
City fought back from a 1-0 deficit at half-time to level within seconds of the restart, Doku cutting inside Vladimir Coufal with excellent footwork and sliding beyond Alphonse Areola for his first goal for City.
Silva and Haaland struck in the final 15 minutes to ensure City maintained their perfect start and stayed top of the Premier League with a 3-1 triumph.
All that had looked less likely when James Ward-Prowse headed in from Coufal’s cross in the first half to give West Ham a deserved lead and put them on course to overtake Guardiola’s side in the league.
The manager said he had not expected such an immediate impact from the 21-year-old Doku, who cost £55million to sign from the Ligue 1 side in the final week of the transfer window, and feared there was a shyness to his performance when he made his debut against Fulham before the international break.
Guardiola watched that game remotely from Barcelona whilst he recovered from back surgery, but since returning to Manchester has been impressed by the progress the Belgium international has made following the 5-1 win against Marco Silva’s side.
“I was in Barcelona, I had the feeling that he played a little bit shy (against Fulham),” he said. “He’d just arrived, had two or three days training, with a team that won the Treble. Maybe he was a little bit in this way.
“But today, no. (I said) use your quality as a winger. One against one, one against two; go. If you don’t have the feeling, pass back to Josko (Gvardiol) and play again.
“Today was from the first minute incredible, aggressive, great determination, arrived many times to the byline. Many, may good things he’s done. Really, really pleased. We thought the quality was there and today he started to prove it.
“When you buy a young player like him for many years (contract), we have to be patient. We cannot expect, I didn’t expect the second game for City to play like he did today. The way he played today, I don’t remember from a long time ago something like that.
“There are processes that he has to learn. Always we are there to help him. At Manchester City, every player has to be (himself). All the players here have a lot of quality.”
City have won all five of their league games this season as they seek an unprecedented fourth consecutive league title.
They were placed under pressure by West Ham for a period in the second half as David Moyes’ side went close through Michail Antonio, Emerson and Kurt Zouma, with Ederson in goal producing a string of fine saves.
“I would say West Ham had more chances in the second half than the first,” said Guardiola. “We created against a team that defends so deep and really, really well. We created a lot of chances in the 90 minutes.
“I’m so proud of the team. It’s great win for us, for the problems (injuries) we have in the squad. It doesn’t matter, the guys always respond well.
“We spoke at half-time, don’t be affected by the result because you’re playing really, really good in the first half. In the second half we were lucky to start and score a goal immediately, we had to be patient then and we had our chances, they had their chances. But really, really good in the way we played.”
Moyes reflected on a game in which his team ran the European champions close but ultimately did not have enough to avoid going down to their first defeat of the season.
“Our other games have had a lot similarities,” he said. “Chelsea missed a penalty kick, then Mick breaks through and scores to make it 2-1. Small margins in football. To be fair, the early season ones have gone for us.
“Today we played against a top team and we’ve done an OK job. Bits l liked, bits of it I didn’t like. But overall I have to say the players did a brilliant job.
“We tried to make it difficult, we always do against City. I think you have to be really clinical and also really clinical defensively as well. You can’t afford to make many mistakes.
“I thought the first goal came at a bad time. I thought their second goal was a mistake and we should have dealt with that much better. It changed the game really at that point.”
Nuno demands Premier League resolves PSR 'mess' as Forest await appeal verdict
Nuno Espirito Santo has called for the Premier League to provide clarity as Nottingham Forest wait on their appeal against a four-point deduction for breaching profit and sustainability rules, describing the situation as a "mess".
Forest were deducted four points in March after being found to have breached the competition's financial rules in the assessment period culminating in the end of the 2022-23 season.
Everton have also had a total of eight points deducted for two separate breaches, but with the Toffees pulling clear of the relegation zone, it is Forest who are looking over their shoulders.
Nuno's team sit just one point clear of 18th-placed Luton Town as they await the outcome of an appeal against their penalty, and he says the lack of clarity is affecting several clubs.
Asked whether he had received an update on Forest's appeal on Thursday, Nuno said: "Unfortunately we haven't heard yet.
"We are expecting to, but not yet. It is very difficult. We have been dealing with this situation for a while.
"We all expected the decision to come sooner, so we would know exactly how many points we have. Do we have 30, 29, 28, 27? We need it as fast as possible.
"To have 30 points would be fantastic, because this is the number of points that the boys achieved on the pitch.
"It is a mess. It should have been decided before. They have had enough time. It is very difficult for us but also for the rest of the league. It is very hard to be in this situation."
Forest visit already-relegated Sheffield United on Saturday, having taken just one point from four Premier League games since beating Fulham 3-1 in early April.
They could be in the relegation zone by the time that match kicks off, with Luton hosting Everton in a huge clash at Kenilworth Road on Friday.
France defender Hernandez to miss Euro 2024 after suffering ACL injury
Lucas Hernandez will miss France's Euro 2024 campaign after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament during Paris Saint-Germain's 1-0 Champions League defeat to Borussia Dortmund.
Dortmund will take a slender lead to the Parc des Princes for next week's semi-final second leg after Niclas Fullkrug's strike powered them past PSG in Wednesday's first leg in Germany.
Hernandez sustained a knee injury while chasing after Fullkrug in the build-up to the goal and was substituted after a brief attempt to play on.
On Thursday, PSG announced an MRI scan had revealed an ACL tear in his left knee, which will require surgery in the coming days.
Hernandez, who has 37 senior international caps, will now miss Euro 2024, with France set to open their Group D campaign against Austria in Dusseldorf on June 17.
Didier Deschamps' side then face the Netherlands in Leipzig four days later, before taking on Poland in Dortmund on June 25.
Hernandez was part of France's squad for the 2022 World Cup but sustained another ligament injury during Les Bleus' opening match against Australia, missing the rest of the tournament and not returning to club football until the start of 2023-24.
Tonali set for August return after receiving suspended two-month ban from FA
Sandro Tonali has been given a suspended two-month ban by the Football Association (FA) after admitting to breaching gambling rules.
The sanction means the Newcastle United midfielder will be eligible to return to action on August 27, 2024, when his 10-month suspension issued by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) expires.
FIFA ratified that ban, causing it to become applicable worldwide, after Tonali admitted to placing bets on matches as part of an investigation into unregulated betting platforms in Italy.
In March, the FA charged Tonali with breaching English football's gambling rules 50 times between August and October last year, leading to fears his spell out of the game could be extended.
However, on Thursday it was confirmed that the FA had suspended Tonali's punishment for the duration of the 2024-25 season, meaning he can return in August if he does not reoffend.
In a statement, Newcastle said: "Sandro Tonali has been given a suspended two-month ban from competitive football by an independent regulatory commission after self-declaring breaches of FA betting rules.
"He has also been fined £20,000 and warned by the FA as to his future conduct.
"Provided that he does not commit any further breach of the FA betting rules during the suspension period, Sandro will not serve any part of the two-month sanction.
"As acknowledged by the FA in the independent regulatory commission's written reasons, the level of assistance Sandro has provided by self-referring and fully cooperating with a subsequent investigation is extraordinary and unprecedented.
"Sandro is continuing to follow a therapeutic plan and educational programme with the club's full support and will continue to train with his team-mates."
Tonali's initial ban has limited him to just eight Premier League appearances since he joined Newcastle from Milan in a £55million deal, while he will also miss Italy's Euro 2024 campaign.
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