Manchester City returned to the top of the Premier League with a dominant display against in-form Newcastle United at the Etihad.
Pep Guardiola's men flew out of the traps with a flurry of attacks, but took 18 minutes to actually find the net. It was worth the minor wait as Ilkay Gundogan's beautifully lofted pass on to the head of Joao Cancelo, who nodded it onto Raheem Sterling's.
The England star could not miss and headed home from close range to ease any nerves that may have been lingering among the Etihad faithful. Aymeric Laporte doubled their advantage just before half-time when he capitalised on some sloppy goalkeeping from Martin Dubravka.
Rodri got his second in as many league games for City's third - a headed effort that marked Guardiola's side drawing level with Liverpool in terms of goals scored this season.
Phil Foden then put City ahead of Liverpool in that regard by adding the icing on the cake with a fourth late on. Sterling put further daylight between them in the goals scored column by notching his second and City's fifth.
Newcastle struggled to lay a glove on their hosts for much of the game, even when City's central defensive lynchpin Ruben Dias was hooked at half-time and replaced by 37-year-old defensive midfielder Fernandinho.
It remains unclear whether Dias was taken off as a precaution or if he had sustained some kind of knock - though if it is the latter, it is unwelcome news for City given how crucial every game left is at this stage of the season.
Mirror Football has analysed five talking points from what was a comfortable return to Premier League action for City after a turbulent week.
Title tilt takes shape
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Some of the more cynical or nervous City fans may have wondered whether Guardiola’s troops would be at their best in the wake of the Madrid fiasco and the pressure that comes with Liverpool dropping points less than 24 hours prior.
Yet there is a reason why this side have won three of the last four Premier League titles and are now on course for a fourth of their own.
Newcastle had their moments, with the Magpies putting the ball in Ederson’s net during the first-half only for the linesman’s flag to spare City blushes, but that was about as good as it got for the visitors.
City played like a team with a point to prove and were good value for their first goal, which was set up beautifully by Cancelo on to the head of Sterling.
Some of the passages of play and precise passing from the hosts were examples of City at their fluid, fluent best and in truth they could have come away with a vastly improved goal difference.
By the time City had a three goal advantage, the Etihad faithful burst into a chorus of 'Championes, Championes, Ole Ole Ole'.
The victory means there are now three points separating City and Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool - both of whom now have just three games left. The Reds now see the fate of the title firmly in the hands of those over at the Etihad.
City shake off European heartache
Guardiola’s men showed no signs of any hangover from the dramatic game against Real Madrid that saw their Champions League hopes ended mid-week.
Understandably, the City stars looked crestfallen come full-time at the Santiago Bernabeu but it was put behind them with an impressive performance against the Magpies.
City had plenty of chances to assert their dominance early on, with Aymeric Laporte blazing over from a corner after finding himself in plenty of space inside the penalty area. A similar sitter occurred just minutes later when Joao Cancelo also fired high and wide.
The fast start was made all the more impressive given the backdrop and context of the last game, but Newcastle knew from the first whistle they were to be up against it – even if a goal did evade Guardiola’s side in the opening 15 minutes, though they didn’t have to wait much longer with Sterling’s opener in the 18th minute.
At one stage of the second-half's opening exchanges, City's dominance had reached such a level that the possession stats read in favour of the hosts by 99%.
De Bruyne pulls the strings
Much to the dismay of Newcastle, Kevin De Bruyne was in the mood at the Etihad and delivered the kind of crosses that seemingly only he can execute.
From an attacking perspective, De Bruyne is very much the man who sets the tempo for City and that is exactly what he did all afternoon against a Magpies side that struggled to deal with his vision and accuracy.
Had Gabriel Jesus scored after De Bruyne remarkably found him when no pass appeared to be on, there would have undoubtedly been shouts for assist of the season from the Belgian.
City are one of the most dangerous teams in the world when in transition, largely due to De Bruyne’s ability to cut a team already vulnerable open with one perfectly-weighted pass.
In the first half alone, De Bruyne created three chances – the most of any player on the pitch, six crosses and an astonishing twenty passes into the final third. By the end of the game, De Bruyne had managed to make six chances for his teammates.
The Belgium international got himself an assist with City's third, De Bruyne's inviting corner met by the head of Rodri who put the result beyond any doubt.
Grealish rewarded with start
It has been a difficult debut season at the Etihad for Britain’s most expensive footballer ever, but Guardiola displayed a show of faith in £100million man Jack Grealish for the visit of Eddie Howe’s side.
Grealish faced plenty of criticism in the wake of City’s Champions League elimination, particularly due to the fact he spurned two glorious chances while City were still leading in the tie.
Many pundits and fans alike claimed the cameo appearance off the bench in Madrid was a fitting metaphor for his entire season, but Guardiola sent a message to the former Aston Villa skipper’s detractors by starting him on Sunday.
Grealish made his presence felt early on with some impressive wing-play, but in truth the bulk of City’s attacking effort came down the opposite flank with Sterling and Cancelo. As is often case, the England international was subject to some over-zealous physical treatment.
One of the final passages of play in the first-half saw Sterling fizz a pass along the face of Newcastle’s goal, only for it to find Grealish on his heels and unable to convert the chance into anything meaningful.
It was the kind of situation that would often occur with Sterling himself, though he has drastically improved in and around the six-yard box after years under Guardiola – Grealish will be hoping for the same kind of return as his City career goes on.
He capped off a decent display by playing a huge part in Foden's late strike after showing his pace with a blistering run down the left-flank. There was more to come from Grealish, who registered an assist for City's fifth goal of the game after laying the goal on a silver platter for Sterling.
Newcastle’s Manchester misery
Though Newcastle have shown vast improvement since Eddie Howe’s appointment and become one of the form teams of the calendar year, they still couldn’t find a way to get a win at the Etihad.
The defeat continues a miserable run for the Magpies who are now without a win in the blue half of Manchester in 17 attempts.
Even for a team that have been a thorn in the side of so many opponents this year, City away was always going to be a tough ask – especially with title prospects on the line.
Newcastle looked impotent in attack, with the likes of Chris Wood and Allan Saint-Maximin failing to get the better of a City back-line that contained an ageing Fernandinho for the entirety of the second-half following Dias’ withdrawal.
10 minutes of the second-half passed by before Newcastle completed a successful pass – in that time, City had 108 to their name. Ederson was a passenger for much of the 90 minutes, the Brazilian barely forced into action at all bar one save from Callum Wilson in the final ten minutes.
