3 things we learned as Man City dominated Chelsea in a pre-season friendly

Manchester City picked up their first win of their pre-season tour on Saturday after a 4-2 victory over Premier League rivals Chelsea.

City finally managed to end their pre-season losing streak when they traveled to the Ohio Stadium to face the Blues. New Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has won just once in four friendlies so far, drawing with League One side Wrexham and losing to City and Celtic.

Maresca will hope to rewrite the turbulent start to his Chelsea career when he welcomes the likes of Cole Palmer and Marc Cucurella ahead of next season – who are no longer with the club after reaching the Euro 2024 finals in Germany.

Erling Haaland headed the scoresheet on Saturday, while Raheem Sterling and Noni Madueke scored for the Blues – here are three things we learned from City's win.

Haaland, Norway's goalscoring machine, remains a reliable threat in City's attack. He netted three goals behind Robert Sanchez, making defenders unable to block his path.

The summer reset proved to be a ruse for Haaland, as the 24-year-old scored twice in the first five minutes to silence Chelsea before he had the chance to capitalize on Maresca's tactics.

He is in mid-season form before the campaign begins, and if Saturday was anything to go by, Haaland could be one of the most feared players in the league once again.

Chelsea have managed to field almost their first team to face City, but they are still cracking under the pressure of the Premier League champions.

It looks like Maresca has a tough job to do if he is to turn this team into a serious outfit, rather than champions of their downfall. Against City, Chelsea found themselves in dangerous situations, conceding goals while playing at the back.

Mistakes were made – Tosin Adarabioyo let the ball fall to Jack Grealish which led to Haaland's penalty, while Moises Caicedo lost possession to allow the striker his second goal. Hopefully these are just mistakes, but the Blues' performances so far may set off alarm bells for Maresca.

City will be incredibly grateful to open their season against Chelsea, if Saturday was anything to go by.

Pep Guardiola will be hoping to make a good start to the Premier League if he is to lift the title again, after predicting that the team could struggle due to the absence of many of their stars in the pre-season.

City have improved, even without major talents, dominating Maresca's team and running through midfield with ease. When Phil Foden's men, Kyle Walker, Manuel Akanji and John Stones return to action, they may be thanking the Premier League for their soft opening.

READ THE LATEST FEATURES AND ANALYSIS FROM 90MIN