David Silva scored a brace and Yaya Toure scored another as Manchester City gained an important win against Crystal Palace to put the champions level on points with league leaders Chelsea.
It was Silva who got the goal just after the break after Zabaleta cut it back from a dangerous diagonal run for the Spanish playmaker. His shot took a deflection off Scott Dann, which looped the ball over Julian Speroni.
The little Spaniard got the game’s second on the hour-mark when he tidily finished Alexandar Kolarov’s low cross into the net.
Yaya Toure confirmed their eight game unbeaten streak after a swift counter attack spearheaded by James Milner, who laid the ball into the rampaging midfielder’s path leading to the ball being smashed into the roof of the net.
Samir Nasri in particular stood out as the player of the game as he and Silva combined perfectly on numerous occasions, both linking up with some lovely touches deep in Palace’s defence.
James McArthur scored for the Eagles but he was incorrectly given offside, a goal which would have made the game 2-1 and will no doubt give Neil Warnock something to shout about.
It turned out to be a routine win for the two-time Premier League winners as their tika-taka football vanquished their southern counterparts in convincing fashion and Manuel Pellegrini will hope this win can spur them into even better form at a vital period of the season.
Manchester City
- 01 Hart
- 05 Zabaleta
- 26 Demichelis
- 20 Mangala
- 11 Kolarov
- 42 Y Touré
- 25 Fernandinho
- 15 Jesús Navas
- 21 Silva (69′ Lampard)
- 08 Nasri (89′ Sinclair)
- 07 Milner (82′ Fernando)
Substitutes
- 03 Sagna
- 06 Fernando
- 12 Sinclair
- 13 Caballero
- 18 Lampard
- 38 Boyata
- 61 Ambrose
Crystal Palace
- 01 Speroni
- 34 Kelly
- 06 Dann
- 04 Hangeland
- 02 Ward
- 15 Jedinak
- 42 Puncheon (84′ Thomas)
- 18 McArthur
- 28 Ledley (90′ Bannan)
- 07 Bolasie
- 10 Campbell (67′ Zaha)
Substitutes
- 03 Mariappa
- 11 Zaha
- 13 Hennessey
- 14 Thomas
- 16 Gayle
- 25 Bannan
- 27 Delaney
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