Manchester City scored three early goals on the way to an emphatic 4-0 win over Bournemouth on Saturday that kept them fourth in the Premier League.
Fernando, Kevin de Bruyne and Sergio Aguero struck in the first 19 minutes of the match as City blew away their hosts with a clinical display of attacking football.
Midfielder Fernando slotted home from a corner, Belgian De Bruyne, returning to the side after injury, calmly finished a flowing move and striker Aguero powered home a header.
The visitors eased off in the second half before Aleksandar Kolarov added a fourth goal in stoppage time for City who enjoyed a perfect preparation for their Champions League quarter-final first leg at Paris St Germain on Wednesday.
In another match in EPL, Sunderland were plunged into even deeper trouble in the fight to avoid Premier League relegation after they failed to turn their pressure into goals against West Bromwich Albion.
The Black Cats' leading marksman Jermain Defoe missed two excellent chances to put the home side ahead in the first half and went perilously close to scoring a winner in the 90th minute, only to be deprived by Ben Foster's excellent save.
West Brom rarely threatened and even took off forward Saido Berahino, who had scored three goals in his previous three Premier League appearances against the Baggies, to hand a debut to 16-year-old Jonathan Leko.
Sunderland, who had a Dame N'Doye goal ruled out for offside in the dying seconds, are still deep in trouble in the relegation zone in 18th place, four points behind Norwich City and two ahead of their neighbours Newcastle United.
In another match, Newcastle United's Premier League survival hopes took a blow with a 3-2 defeat at Norwich City that left them second-bottom and six points adrift of their opponents whose own hopes of staying up are improving by the week.
Newcastle manager Rafa Benitez must have thought he had pulled off a masterstroke when he brought on Aleksandar Mitrovic and the Serbian, who did not start because of his midweek international exertions, scored twice, including a penalty.
But the defensive problems that have undermined Newcastle's season continued when Norwich's Martin Olsson was then allowed to score a late winner that leaves United staring at relegation along with north-east rivals Sunderland.
"When you concede after the last minute of the first half and the last minute of the second half, after what we did in the second half, it's really painful," said Benitez. "The only thing we can take as a positive is the reaction of the team."
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