Manchester City destroyed League One Burton Albion with a 9-0 victory in the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday.
Holders City took just five minutes to get going through Kevin de Bruyne's header from a David Silva cross, before Gabriel Jesus doubled their lead on the half hour for the first of his four goals with a header of his own from close range.
Jesus then made it 3-0 with a 10-yard finish off the post (34), and Oleksandr Zinchenko continued the procession with his first-ever City goal (37), a deep cross which somehow found its way over goalkeeper Bradley Collins.
Player ratings
Man City: Muric (6), Walker (8), Otamendi (7), Garcia (7), Zinchenko (8), Gundogan (7), D Silva (9), Sane (8), De Bruyne (9), Mahrez (9), Jesus (9)
Subs: Foden (7), B Silva (7), Danilo (6)
Burton: Collins (4), Brayford (4), Buxton (4), Allen (4), Turner (4), Fraser (5), Akins (4), Harness (3), Hutchinson (4), Wallace (4), Boyce (4)
Subs: Fox (5), Templeton (5), Sbarra (NA)
Man of the match: Gabriel Jesus
Jesus got his third and City's fifth with a header following a fine move (57), substitute Phil Foden made it six with a close-range finish (63), before Jesus flicked in for seven with 25 minutes still remaining.
Kyle Walker then turned home an eighth (70) and Riyad Mahrez poked in for 9-0 (83), and that was the end of the scoring as City took an insurmountable lead into the second leg at the Pirelli Stadium on January 23, live on Sky Sports Football.
It looked to be a routine evening for the hosts early on as De Bruyne got them going with his 13th goal involvement in 13 League Cup games for City. Laying the ball off to David Silva and continuing his run, the Belgian sneaked in between Burton's centre-backs to head neatly past Bradley Collins.
Burton, backed by over 3,000 fans, then looked bright, missing a fine chance at the far post as Marcus Myers-Harness blazed over unmarked from 10 yards, but Jesus made them pay with a close-range header after Leroy Sane's shot was saved.
Team news
Phil Foden was placed on the bench and Eric Garcia started for City, but it was a strong side with four changes from the side that beat Rotherham 7-0 on Sunday. Burton, meanwhile, made three changes from the side that beat Rochdale.
Jesus hit his second hat-trick of the season, going on to score four
Jesus hit his second hat-trick of the season, going on to score four
VAR was used as City got their third, looking at a potential offside on David Silva before he squared for Jesus to finish with his left foot off the post, but the goal was rightly given.
And City's third goal in just eight minutes came through Zinchenko, taking on a first-time cross from the left only to see it loop goalwards and into the far corner.
Burton enjoyed a little more of the ball early in the second half, but City's quality showed again as a fine move saw David Silva slip in Mahrez on the right, before his dinked cross was simply nodded home by Jesus.
Substitute Foden got his second goal at the Etihad in four days, finishing off after Jesus's shot was saved when one-on-one with Collins, David Silva blazed over a sitter from eight yards, but Jesus got City's seventh with a delightful flick from close range from Sane's dangerous centre.
Walker turned home his first and City's eighth
Walker turned home his first and City's eighth
Walker was on hand with a controlled finish to turn home Mahrez's left-wing cross into the far corner for 8-0, David Silva's deflected shot then hit the post, but it was soon nine as Mahrez slid in to poke home after swinging and missing his first attempt inside the six-yard box.
There was a pantomime feel to the final stages as City fans sarcastically jeered their players for failing to get a 10th, before Pep Guardiola showed respect to Burton at the final whistle, shaking hands with every player.
Opta stats
Manchester City are the first side in the top four tiers of English football to score at least seven goals in back-to-back matches in all competitions since Leeds United did so back in October 1967 (9-0 v Spora Luxembourg in the Fairs Cup and 7-0 v Chelsea in the top-flight).
Manchester City have scored eight goals in a single match in any competition for the first time since November 1987, when they beat Huddersfield 10-1 in a second-tier encounter.
Burton Albion's 9-0 defeat is the heaviest League Cup defeat by any side since Liverpool beat Fulham 10-0 back in September 1986, and is the largest ever margin of defeat in the semi-final of the competition.
Man City's 9-0 victory is Pep Guardiola's joint-largest margin of victory as a manager, alongside Barcelona's 9-0 thrashing of L'Hospitalet during a Copa del Rey match in December 2011.
What's next?
Manchester City host Wolves on Monday Night Football, live on Sky Sports Premier League from 7pm, while Burton host Gillingham in Sky Bet League One on Saturday at 3pm. The second leg will be played at the Pirelli Stadium on January 22, live on Sky Sports Football
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