Premier League 2024-25: Man City begins title defence with 2-1 win against Chelsea; Haaland, Kovacic score
The HinduErling Haaland scored his 91st goal in his 100th appearance for Manchester City on Sunday as the champion kicked off its Premier League title defence with a lively 2-0 away win over Chelsea. I remember last year he made a really good save against me, it had been irritating me for a long time so, yeah, it was a perfect goal.” AS IT HAPPENED: Chelsea vs Manchester City HIGHLIGHTS Former Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic made sure of victory for the visitors six minutes from time, racing through a disorganised Chelsea midfield and thumping the ball into Sanchez’s net. “We have an advantage, it’s our ninth season together so we know each other well.” Chelsea, in its first Premier League outing under new manager Enzo Maresca, fashioned some hopeful attacking moves, with a timely Ruben Dias intervention denying Nicolas Jackson in the 14th minute. But it was clear Maresca, who worked alongside Pep Guardiola at City for a season before leading Leicester City to Premier League promotion last May, has work to do with his plentiful squad.