Manchester City strolled to a comfortable 2-0 victory over Villarreal in the Champions League on Tuesday at Estadio de la Ceramica.

Pep Guardiola’s side dominated from the off, squandering two chances inside the opening three minutes. Savinho first squared for Jeremy Doku, who failed to make clean contact, before Erling Haaland glanced a header just wide moments later.

Still, it took only 17 minutes for City to take the lead, as Rico Lewis picked out Haaland with a superb cut-back pass on the edge of the six-yard-box, and the Norwegian made no mistake from close range.

Villarreal’s best opening of the half came through Pape Gueye, who saw a thumping effort fly narrowly wide before Bernardo Silva doubled City’s advantage five minutes before the break, planting a clinical header past Luiz Junior off Savinho’s set-up.

Savinho continued his dazzling performance as he came close to adding a third, dancing through the box before forcing Junior into a low, diving save.

City then received a huge let-off in the closing stages as the hosts squandered a number of chances, with Nicolas Pepe first heading wide from close range before sending a powerful volley just over the bar.

At the other end, Haaland twice stung Junior’s palms as he chased a second, while Tani Oluwaseyi struck the post in stoppage time to cap Villarreal’s frustration.

The win lifts City to fifth in the standings, level on seven points with Borussia Dortmund, while Villarreal remain winless in the Champions League and sit 29th in the table.

Data debrief: Haaland’s happy hot streak rolls on

Haaland, so often Manchester City’s biggest goal threat, has now scored in each of his last nine games in all competitions.

Only between August and October 2022 (10 games) has the Norwegian enjoyed a longer run in his top-flight club career.

Villarreal and City created comparable chances on Tuesday, with Marcelino’s side generating 1.42 expected goals (xG), while Guardiola’s men managed 1.5 xG, their clinical finishing ultimately proving the difference between the two sides.