Enzo Fernández started for Manchester City after Nico O’Reilly’s back injury during the warm-up and sparkled, showing why the club paid a British-record-equalling £125m for the midfielder. The winner came courtesy of Erling Haaland’s 300th goal in club football and Fernández had a key part, feeding Antoine Semenyo, whose cross from the right was crashed home.
In the second half Coventry hammered away, but their wait for a first top-flight goal since Mustapha Hadji’s second in a 3-2 defeat at Aston Villa on 5 May 2001 goes on. The visitors did not like losing, but were heartened by holding the star-studded hosts to a slender win, though the bottom line is all three of their Premier League outings on their return have been defeats.
