MATCH REPORT AND PLAYER RATINGS - MANCHESTER CITY 5-1 WOLVES

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Four goals from Erling Haaland helped Manchester City on their way to smashing Wolverhampton Wanderers at the Etihad Stadium to keep the title in their hands going into the final three games of the season.

The Norwegian forward scored two penalties and two very well taken efforts to take his tally up to 25 goals in the Premier League and 36 in all competitions - meaning he has already scored the second most goals in all competitions of any City player in a single season since 1941 - behind only himself from last season.

The first spot kick - described by Match of the Day pundit and (crucially) former Arsenal striker Ian Wright as "one of the worst penalty decisions in history" despite clear contact between Josko Gvardiol and Rayan Ait-Nouri, was dispatched clinically by Haaland in the bottom left corner.

The 23 year old scored his second by leaping high in the air and powering a header past Jose Sa after latching onto Rodri's clip to the back post from the right hand side.

He completed his hattrick on the stroke of halftime, as he was brought down in the box by Nelson Semedo as he ran through on goal to win a penalty after a VAR intervention.

Haaland slotted the ball in the same corner to complete his first half hattrick, his third of the season in all competitions and his second hattrick in his second home game against Wolves.

Gary O'Neil's side pulled a goal back early on in the second half through Hwang Hee-Chan after messy defending from City, but the Blues hit back minutes later after a slick passing move involving excellent line breaking passes from Ederson and Phil Foden put Haaland through, who finished emphatically from the edge of the box after cutting in on his left foot.

The rout was completed late on, as substitute Julian Alvarez latched onto Rodri's through ball and finished low in the bottom right corner on his 100th appearance for the Blues.

It was a convincing performance from City, who were the better team throughout. Wolves threatened when going forward, but that meant they left vast space for the likes of Haaland, Foden and Kevin de Bruyne to exploit in transitions.

Bernardo Silva stuck very far wide on the right hand side throughout, which left space in the right half space for Foden, De Bruyne or, in the case of City's second goal, Rodri, to aim to supply Haaland at the back post.

Another common route of attack for City was trying to play through passes behind Wolves' defence, which was apparent in the build up for both penalties, with Foden and Mateo Kovacic both playing precise through balls in the build up to the foul for the first and third penalties respectively.

But, when Haaland is playing in the form he was on Saturday, there is no stopping him from adding his name to the scoresheet, meaning it was always likely that City were going to get enough goals to win the game.

After City's penultimate game at the Etihad Stadium this season, they go to tricky away games against Fulham and Tottenham in London, before heading back to the Etihad Stadium against West Ham United on the final day of the season to face West Ham United, where they'll be hoping the league is still in their hands after their tough two matches.

Here are the player ratings from the resounding victory against Wolves: Ederson - 6.5/10 - Somewhat at fault for the goal after failing to claim a cross, but instantly made amends by playing a huge role in Haaland's fourth goal with a line breaking pass to Foden under pressure.

Walker - 7/10 - Locked down his side well, and offered support to Bernardo in deeper areas by offering himself for the backwards pass and looking after the ball well.

Akanji - 7/10 - Aggressive and decisive with duelling, as he stepped forward and engaged with Wolves' attackers as they were trying to link up and start a counter.

Ake - 6.5/10 - A few shaky moments aside, Ake was as dependable as usual in the centre of City's defence, and has really cemented his starting place alongside Akanji in City's first choice centre back partnership with his performances since returning from injury.

Gvardiol - 8.5/10 - Another sensational performance from the 22 year old, who just seems to be getting better and better every time he puts on the shirt, with his strong and competent defending mixed with unbelievable technical ability.

Rodri - 8.5/10 - Excellent performance from Rodri at the base of midfield, showcasing the more creative side of his game that often seems to come out when alongside Kovacic in midfield with two good assists on top of his usual defensive work.

Kovacic - 8/10 - Like Rodri, Kovacic got plenty of touches of the ball, and wriggled his way out of tight situations to help City progress the ball up the pitch.

Bernardo - 7.5/10 - Perhaps a little slow with the ball on the right wing, often not playing the ball to Walker after his lung busting overlapping runs, but was otherwise spectacular with his close control, passing and ball carrying, as he got the one up over Hugo Bueno in that one vs one battle.

De Bruyne - 6.5/10 - A bit of an off day for De Bruyne, who seemed much less sharp than usual in front of goal, often delaying the final ball. He grew into the game, however, and was much more like his best just before he was substituted late on in the second half.

Foden - 7.5/10 - Fairly quiet in the first half bar a few excellent moments, but really excelled in the second period, supplying Haaland for his fourth and almost setting him up for a fifth with a bicycle kick.

Haaland - 10/10 - Nothing more to say other than he has hit his productivity rates of last season at exactly the right time for City. He dipped last May - so with four huge upcoming games, it is really positive to see Haaland back to his very best at exactly the right time for the Blues.

Substitutes:

Stones - 6.5/10 - The game was won by the time Stones came on, meaning he had little to do other than pass the ball around the back in a sedate manner to help City see it out.

Nunes - 6.5/10 - Missed a big chance to score against his former side, in an otherwise quiet cameo from the 25 year old.

Doku - 7/10 - Really positive performance from Doku, who looked to take his man on in a positive and direct manner, and succeeded the majority of times.

Grealish - 6.5/10 - Won a few fouls and helped City dictate the tempo of the game by slowing it down when he had the ball.

Alvarez - 7/10 - Other than his well taken goal, it was a fairly quiet cameo from the Argentinian in his brief spell on the pitch.