Manuel Pellegrini praises Yaya Toure, criticizes Raheem Sterling

Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has praised Yaya Toure for his goalscoring performance in their 3-0 win at West Bromwich Albion, while also providing a lukewarm assessment of debutant Raheem Sterling.

The Ivorian midfielder gave the Citizens an early lead when his low strike was flicked on by David Silva and deflected into the net by Craig Dawson.

He then added a second goal with a powerful strike into the top corner midway through the first half, before Vincent Kompany killed the contest off with a second-half header.

Pellegrini told Sky Sports News after the game: "It is very important to start the season with a win. I'm always pleased when my team scores.

"I like attacking football. We did really well and when you score it is important to score more but be balanced. To keep the clean sheet is also important. We returned to see the Yaya Toure of a season ago.

"Raheem Sterling had two clear chances to score but he is just starting with new teammates. It was maybe not his best performance."

Man City, top of the Premier League table after the first round of games, welcome current champions Chelsea to the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.