Erling Haaland’s hat-trick propelled Manchester City to a 4-2 pre-season victory over a mistake-ridden Chelsea in Columbus.
The 24-year-old striker capitalized on two early blunders by Chelsea, with Enzo Maresca’s side conceding two goals in the first five minutes.
The Premier League champions were handed an early advantage after Tosin Adarabioyo’s errant pass led to Levi Colwill fouling Haaland in the box.
The Norwegian converted the penalty after a re-take.
Haaland quickly doubled City’s lead by intercepting a misguided pass from Moises Caicedo and slotting it in.
A pair of rapid second-half goals extended City’s dominance. Substitute Raheem Sterling’s mistake allowed Oscar Bobb to score with a near-post shot in the 55th minute.
A minute later, Haaland completed his hat-trick following another error from Malo Gusto.
Chelsea managed to pull two goals back. Sterling volleyed in a cross at the 59-minute mark, and Noni Madueke scored on the counter-attack in the 88th minute, much to the delight of the 68,000 spectators at Ohio Stadium.
Maresca praised his team’s effort in a “strange” game, attributing both teams’ errors to the “dry” pitch.
Manchester City now heads back to the UK to prepare for the Community Shield against Manchester United next Saturday.
Chelsea remains in the United States, gearing up for a match against Real Madrid on Tuesday night before facing Inter Milan at Stamford Bridge next Sunday.
