Kevin De Bruyne celebrated wearing the Manchester City captain’s armband by scoring his first Premier League goal at The Etihad since May.
De Bruyne, who has fallen behind Fernandinho, Ilkay Gundogan and Ruben Dias in the list of City skippers, was able to lead the team out because none of that trio started.
And after Bernardo Silva had put the champions ahead after 12 minutes, the Belgian settled any remaining nerves with a powerful finish into the top corner after 70 minutes.
Though the performance was far from convincing, it maintained City’s record of not having conceded at home in the league this season.