Phil Foden produced two assists in the opening half as Manchester City ran out comfortable 3-0 winners against Crystal Palace, tightening the Premier League race and bringing them within two points of Arsenal at the summit.
With Saturday’s FA Cup final against Chelsea in mind, Pep Guardiola rotated heavily, making six changes and giving rest to Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku and Rayan Cherki.
At first, it appeared the lineup shuffle might slow City’s momentum, and Palace almost struck early. Jean-Philippe Mateta’s effort looked like it had crossed the line, but Brennan Johnson was caught offside in the preceding phase.
City struggled to manufacture clear-cut opportunities as frustration grew among the Etihad crowd. Their closest moment came when Rayan Ait-Nouri cut inside and fired toward the side-netting after a quick exchange.
Then, around the half-hour mark, City found a spark. Foden played a blind back-heel to split the Palace back line, and Antoine Semenyo finished with a curling strike into the far corner.
The breakthrough shifted the tempo further in City’s favour, and Omar Marmoush made it 2-0 eight minutes later. He was set up by another delicate touch from Foden, turning the lead into a more comfortable advantage.
While City could have pushed harder after that, aware that an improved goal difference could be valuable in the title chase, they largely managed the contest after the break, keeping control without taking unnecessary risks.
Bernardo Silva nearly allowed Palace back into the game, but Ismaila Sarr fired directly at Gianluigi Donnarumma. The goalkeeper was under pressure from Nathan Ake, who helped close down the angle.
Savinho put the result beyond doubt with 10 minutes remaining, calmly finding the net after Cherki drew defenders forward against a retreating Palace shape.
City have closed to within two points with two fixtures left, and they also hold the edge on goal difference—setting them up to capitalise if Arsenal slip.
Arsenal play Burnley on Monday at the Emirates Stadium, and can clinch the league title if they win and City drop points at Bournemouth the following day.
