Erling Haaland may have been a Leeds fan as a boy, but the striker showed no signs of split loyalties as his brace guided Manchester City to a 3-1 win at Elland Road. The Premier League’s top scorer netted twice, including his 20th of the season, to help his side move back into second place on the table.

A white-hot atmosphere greeted both teams, and those volume levels were nearly turned up another notch for the away fans when Haaland saw his shot saved by Illan Meslier after just 40 seconds. İlkay Gündoğan and Kevin De Bruyne fired off target from long range as the visitors set up camp in the United half.

As the game wore on, City started having even more joy around the 18-yard box, only for Meslier to deny Haaland for a second time, while Jack Grealish spurned two glorious openings by firing over the bar. A goal was inevitable, though, and wave after wave of attacks finally paid off in injury time when Rodri rounded off a glorious attack by sliding home from close range.

Once ahead, there was no looking back for Pep Guardiola’s side, who doubled their lead shortly after halftime when Haaland tapped into an empty net from Grealish’s pass. The pair linked up again just after the hour mark to make it 3-0, playing a quick one-two in the area before the Norwegian – watched from the stands by his dad Alfie, who played for both clubs during his career – slotted into the bottom corner.

Leeds surprisingly pulled one back on 73 minutes when Pascal Struijk nodded home from the edge of the six-yard box. With time running out, the hosts threatened to set up a grandstand finish after Haaland had wasted a chance for a hat-trick, as Joe Gelhardt and Sam Greenwood each came close to further reducing the deficit.

There was to be no comeback, though, as United suffered their sixth defeat in eight games to remain just two points above the relegation zone, while City jumped back above Newcastle to within five points of league-leaders Arsenal.