EPL: Raheem Gives Sterling Performance Against Crystal Palace To Send City Top

Raheem Sterling scored twice against Crystal Palace to inspire Manchester City to a ninth straight Premier League win and send Pep Guardiola’s side to the top of the table – if only for a few hours.

With title rivals Liverpool hosting Chelsea in the late kick-off (16:30 BST), City moved one point clear at the summit after a dominant performance at Selhurst Park.

Sterling opened the scoring after Kevin de Bruyne’s beautifully weighted pass saw his team-mate outsprint Patrick van Aanholt before an exquisite finish beyond Vicente Guaita.

England winger Sterling’s instinctive finish after Leroy Sane’s pass doubled the lead before Palace, who are 11 points above the relegation zone, reduced the deficit through Luka Milivojevic’s late free-kick.

Substitute Gabriel Jesus extended City’s lead with a smart finish to leave City one point clear of Liverpool with five games remaining.

However, Liverpool will return to the summit if they beat Chelsea later in the day.