Calvin Bassey was an unused substitute as champions Manchester City picked Fulham apart in a comfortable 5-1 win as they continued their 100% start to the season and also made it a club-record 18 consecutive home wins.

The match began with both teams showing promise, but it wasn’t until the 31st minute that City took the lead.

Erling Haaland’s scuffed shot fell to Julián Álvarez, who fired City ahead.

Fulham responded immediately, with Tim Ream tapping in a goal after Ederson fumbled a header from Raúl Jiménez.

Nathan Aké gave Manchester City the lead again just before halftime, converting a corner with a powerful close-range header.

There was controversy as Bernd Leno protested that Manuel Akanji was offside and blocking his line of sight, but VAR disagreed.

Haaland, who had gone four home games without a goal, finally found the net. Álvarez provided the assist, and the Norwegian slipped the ball beyond Leno.

With a comfortable three-goal lead, Haaland completed his hat-trick, scoring from the spot after a foul on Álvarez and finished superbly in stoppage time to complete his treble.

Manchester City’s impressive performance continued their perfect start to the season, leaving Fulham with a difficult defeat to digest.