Kevin De Bruyne and John Stones both get 9, Ruben Dias 8; Eberechi Eze 5: Manchester City v Crystal Palace player ratings

A comfortable 4-0 win at the Etihad moves Pep Guardiola's side up to second in the Premier League table

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  MANCHESTER CITY PLAYER RATINGS: Ederson 6 – Taking the odd goal kick was as tricky as things got for the Brazilian. A quiet night between the sticks. Getty Images

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  Kyle Walker 7 – Had the unenviable task of marking Eberechi Eze on the right side. To the defender’s credit, he had the Palace forward in his back pocket for most of the match. PA

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  Ruben Dias 8 – Dominant in just about every facet of the game. AFP

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  John Stones 9 – Scorer of City’s first and third goals, the Englishman was tremendous all night. Continues to impress alongside Dias. Reuters

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  Oleksandr Zinchenko 7 – Spent most of the game in the opposition’s half, adding good width to City’s play. PA

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  Fernandinho 8 – Controlled the midfield expertly. Broke down counterattacks exceptionally well, and hardly put a foot wrong on the ball. PA

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  Ilkay Gundogan 8 – Marked his return to the side in style, with a rocket strike early in the second half. The German was also highly effective in possession. EPA

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  Kevin De Bruyne 9 – Enjoyed a sensational outing, cutting Palace apart with several defence-splitting passes. His outside of the boot assist for Stones’ opener was a notable highlight. AFP

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  Bernardo Silva 6 – Not one for the highlight reel following his Man of the Match display in the FA Cup last weekend. Replaced early in the second half. EPA

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  Raheem Sterling 8 – Did brilliantly well to beat his man on several occasions, but generally lacked composure in the final third. Made amends with a lovely late free kick to seal the win in style. EPA

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  Gabriel Jesus 7 – The striker still lacks confidence, as was evidenced by his unwillingness to pull the trigger in front of goal. Despite this, his overall link-up play did massively help the home side. Reuters

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  SUBS: Phil Foden (Silva, 60') 7 – Replaced Bernardo Silva on the hour mark. Sharp in possession without ever really threatening the Palace goal. Reuters

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  Ferran Torres (Gundogan, 71’) 7 – The Spaniard’s quick feet won City a handful of free-kicks in the closing stages – one of which Sterling scored from. Reuters

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  Joao Cancelo (De Bruyne, 71) 6 – Slotted into a slightly unfamiliar central midfield position for the last portion of the game (no match photo available). AP

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  CRYSTAL PALACE PLAYER RATINGS: Vicente Guaita 5 – Very sloppy in possession but could do little to keep out any of Man City’s goals. EPA

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  Joel Ward 6 – Solid defensively in spells, especially aerially. PA

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  James Tomkins 5 – Made a few last-ditch tackles in the first half to keep the score line level. Much of his good work was undone by a few lapse moments in the second period, however. Reuters

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  Gary Cahill 6 – His intelligent positioning helped to suppress City’s attack in the first half. Made a solid contribution throughout. AFP

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  Tyrick Mitchell 5 – Really struggled to contain the ever-elusive Sterling down the channel. Beaten a bit too easily by the England international. AFP

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  Luka Milivojevic 5 – Looked off the pace, particularly in a defensive capacity. Subbed off in the second half. EPA

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  Andros Townsend 6 – Despite making a strong start to the game, the winger soon become a bit of a peripheral figure. Was replaced with 15 minutes left. Getty Images

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  James McCarthy 6 – Put in a good shift to try and close down the City midfielders but offered very little in an attacking capacity. Reuters

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  James McArthur 6 – Broke up City’s play very well in the first half, but his influence soon began to wane as the game wore on. Reuters

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  Eberechi Eze 5 – Didn’t see enough of the ball down the left side, in what was a fairly forgettable evening for the former QPR man. EPA

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  Jordan Ayew 7 – Dangerous on the break and in transition. Never quite managed to work a good shooting opportunity of his own. Getty Images

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  SUBS: Jairo Riedewald (Milivojevic, 68) 6 – Offered a bit more defensive solidity to the Palace midfield. Getty Images

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  Michy Batshuayi (Townsend,79) N/A – Hardy had a clean touch of the ball in his 10-minute cameo. Getty Images

Manchester City moved up to second in the Premier League table on Sunday night after marching to a 4-0 win over Crystal Palace at the Etihad Stadium.

England centre-back John Stones scored twice either side of a superb finish from German midfielder Ilkay Gundogan. Raheem Sterling then put further shine on the win when he curled home a free-kick in the final minutes.

The result against Palace makes it five wins in a row for Pep Guardiola and his side and they are now just two points behind rivals Manchester United with a game in hand. Beat Aston Villa at the Etihad on Wednesday and City will climb to the top of the standings, although United could reclaim the summit later that night when they travel to face Fulham.

Either way, it marks an impressive resurgence for City, who were down in 13th after a 2-0 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur in November.

Assessing the performances from Sunday night's game, Nick Judd has provided his player ratings in the photo gallery above. To move on to the next photo, click on the arrows or if using a mobile device, simply swipe.