Erling Haaland's early strike secured a 1-0 victory for Manchester City against Brentford, marking a significant milestone for manager Pep Guardiola. This win at the Gtech Community Stadium was Guardiola's 250th Premier League triumph with City. Haaland scored in the ninth minute, showcasing his strength by outmuscling Sepp van den Berg before finding the net confidently.
Caoimhin Kelleher made an impressive save to deny Tijjani Reijnders' volley before halftime, keeping Brentford in contention. In the second half, Igor Thiago had a great opportunity, but Gianluigi Donnarumma thwarted his effort after Josko Gvardiol failed to clear. Despite losing Rodri to injury in the first half, City held on for three points.
Guardiola has now won 250 out of
349 Premier League matches with City (D50 L49), achieving this milestone faster than any other manager with an English club. Haaland played a crucial role, scoring in nine consecutive games for club and country—his longest streak yet. The Norwegian has scored in 22 of the 23 stadiums he has played at in the top-flight, missing only at Anfield.
The match was evenly contested, with both teams recording an expected goals (xG) of 0.83. City managed ten shots compared to Brentford's four. Despite a tense finish when Kevin Schade blocked a Donnarumma clearance that went wide for a corner, City moved up to fifth place in the league standings.
A hard-fought three points 0-1 @okx pic.twitter.com/sTRkAzYabn
- Manchester City (@ManCity) October 5, 2025
Haaland's goal-scoring form continues as he has now found the net in nine straight appearances across club and international fixtures. This includes six goals in two matches for Norway and ten goals in seven games for City. His performance is pivotal as City climbs to fifth place, trailing leaders Arsenal by three points heading into the international break.
Brentford remains in 16th position after this defeat. City's resilience was tested towards the end when Schade's block almost led to an equaliser, but they managed to secure all three points despite some late pressure from Brentford.
