MAN CITY 2, WATFORD 0
Manchester City maintained their perfect start to the season on the afternoon in which they created a club record.
Victory against Watford made it 10 straight victories as they beat their previous best sequence of results which was set in 1912.
The Blues made it four wins out of four at the start of this campaign to open a three-point lead at the top of the table. They have scored 10 goals with their back line yet to concede.
And with champions Chelsea wobbling and the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal far from convincing, it is looking good for City who also have Kevin De Bruyne to add to their squad with a £50m plus move about to be completed.
Second-half goals from Raheem Sterling, his first for City, and Fernandinho helped City enter the record books, though it was far from a classic game.
Newly-promoted Watford – they had drawn their first three games – set up to frustrate and they achieved that in a goalless opening period.
City’s class eventually told, but this was their least impressive display of the season.
Manager Manuel Pellegrini, whose side struggled last season against many of the so called lesser lights, was pleased with the way in which his side dealt with the challenges that Watford presented.
He said: “We had a lot of possession in the first half, but did not create many chances and they marked us very tight.
“We found a solution by making a change at half time and I am happy about that. By switching to 4-4-2, it gave us more freedom down the right.”
City’s manager would not be drawn on a comment that his side is favourites for the title.
He said: “We are only just starting the season and have played four games.
“Last season we were eight points behind Chelsea and were level by the end of January. It is important not to think about your rivals and concentrate on your own game.”
Pellegrini was delighted to see Sterling score his first goal for the club.
He explained: “Raheem is not just a scoring player. He works hard, had a lot of one on one’s.
“There were a lot of reasons why we bought him and he demonstrated he is not an expensive player, but he is a very good player.”
Pellegrini would not be drawn in De Bruyne’s imminent signing and reports that he is in Manchester having his medical.
City went with the side which kicked off Sunday’s league game at Everton.
And the absences of Pablo Zabaleta, Gael Clichy, Fernando and Wilfried Bony meat that the bench included EDS pair Pablo Maffeo and Kelechi Iheancho along with summer signings Fabian Delph and Patrick Roberts.
By the standards City have set since the beginning of the season, this was a decidedly sluggish start as they struggled to make inroads against a well set up Watford side that was contend to defend and then counter attack.
City laboured and in the opening quarter of the game all they could muster was an Aleksandar Kolarov free kick which dipped over the crossbar while a Sterling shot which was well blocked by centre-back Craig Cathcart.
Gradually City began to crank up the tempo as Watford’s Brazilian keeper Heurelho Gomes was forced into diving saves to deny Bacary Sagna and Sterling in the space in 60 seconds.
Sergio Aguero also shot narrowly wide, but there was little purpose about City’s play as they lacked ways and means of breaking down the visitors.
City made a change at the restart as Jesus Navas was replaced by Samir Nasri.
And it took City, who switched Sterling down the middle after the reshuffle, 90 seconds to break the deadlock.
Silva played the ball out to Sagna and the overlapping right back delivered a low cross which Sterling, six yards out, slotted low past Gomes as he opened his scoring account for City.
Soon it was 2-0 as Fernandinho doubled the lead. Yaya Toure fired a free kick into the defensive wall and the Brazilian headed the ball the ball to Silva who returned a pass to the midfielder who fired an unstoppable shot into the far corner for his second goal of the season.
Toure came close to adding a third goal with a shot that flew narrowly wide following a neat build up which ended with Kolarov setting up the Ivorian.
City brought on summer signing Fabian Delph with 15 minutes left for his home debut then in the dying minutes gave a first-team bow to Iheancho.
Nasri forced a flying save from Gomes late on as City pressed for a third goal.