City's first home league game since being found guilty of over 100 financial breaches unsurprisingly yielded a chorus of boos for the Premier League anthem pre-match.
An emotionally charged atmosphere off the pitch wasn’t exactly replicated on it, as City struggled for early momentum, but once they hit their stride, it always felt inevitable that they would take the lead eventually.
Ruben Dias fired in a warning shot that forced Christian Walton to make a stunning stop, but the Tractor Boys didn’t heed that warning and fell behind moments later when Jeremy Doku’s cross was finished off by City’s forgotten man Phil Foden.
But that didn’t deter Gary O’Neil’s men, who hit back instantaneously when Abdoul Ouattara’s measured ball in behind Marc Guehi freed Daizen Maeda and he rolled home an equaliser.
The visitors ultimately weren’t on level terms for too long as, after squandering a chance to take the lead when Emersonn whistled an effort narrowly wide, they were undone by the inevitable, when Erling Haaland popped up in the middle of the box to head home Mateo Kovacic’s cross.
Dias could’ve sent Enzo Maresca’s men into the break in a commanding position, but his second stinging drive of the afternoon was met by an equally impressive Walton save.
Headed chances for Emersonn and Nico O’Reilly going wide after the break saw the wait for the game’s fourth goal go on, although that was likely to be a bigger concern for Ipswich, who knew chances here were always likely to be at a premium.
Enzo Fernandez wasted another chance to double City’s lead when he ballooned over a 25-yard free kick, but that proved to be the last reprieve the Tractor Boys were handed, as Haaland burst through the heart of the visitors’ defence to cooly slot home City’s third and all but end the game as a contest.
It was always likely to be a long way back from there for O’Neil’s men, even with the sheer number of late goals they’ve scored this season, although they did snatch a late consolation through Zian Flemming from the penalty spot.
The City juggernaut continues to roll on though, in spite of VAR denying Haaland a hat-trick to round off their seventh successive win to start the season in the closing stages. Only two teams in PL history have ever done so before, and both went on to win the title!
Flashscore Man of the Match: Erling Haaland (Manchester City)
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