The Premier League's final action before the international break saw Manchester City beat Brentford in London on Sunday evening.
It was Erling Haaland, of course, who opened the scoring for the visitors - a terrific show of strength to hold off Brentford defender Sepp van den Berg before calmly firing the ball into the back of the net.
The game struggled to ignite any sparks, though, for the remaining 80 minutes in what was a relatively dull affair in west London.
However, the major concern for City boss Pep Guardiola will be a first-half injury to Rodri.
His side continue to struggle without the Spaniard - their second-half performance left a lot to be desired - although today they ultimately managed to get the win over the line against a lacklustre Brentford.
With that being said, here are three things we learnt from today's game.
Erling Haaland at his ruthless best
Erling Haaland won the game yet again for Manchester City
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A lot has been said about Haaland this season.
The Norwegian already has nine Premier League goals to his name and looks even more ruthless, physical and clinical than ever before.
It took less than 10 minutes for him to get on the scoreline today, and he absolutely bullied the Brentford defence.
It was a simple lobbed ball from Josko Gvardiol and Haaland still had so much to do, but he did it with aggression and absolute precision.
Erling Haaland slotted home his ninth Premier League goal of the season
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Brentford defender van den Berg could not get around the 6ft 5in giant, who got his body in the way of the centre-back before smashing it underneath the on-rushing Caoimhin Kelleher.
There’s little to be said about this man that hasn’t been said already; there are no more superlatives.
As Gary Neville mentioned on Sky Sports, there’s more to his game now than just goals - he has become a true leader in the Manchester City dressing room. He is now the player that Pep Guardiola can look to to turn a game at any point. His brilliance single-handedly won the game for City today.
What he has shown at the start of this season means that the rest of the Premier League, no, Europe, should be on very high alert.
Rodri woes continue
Rodri suffered yet another injury midway through the first half
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Manchester City were utterly dominant in the first half, and should have gone into the break more than just a goal to the good.
Encouraging performances from Oscar Bobb, Savinho and Tijjani Reijnders, in addition to Haaland’s fabulous finish, would have pleased Guardiola.
One thing that absolutely would not, is Rodri’s early injury.
The Spaniard appeared to feel his hamstring midway through the first half, forcing Guardiola into his early withdrawal, replacing him with Nico Gonzalez.
It was the same change that was made in the Champions League earlier in the week - one that resulted in Gonzalez giving away an unnecessary penalty for kicking Eric Dier in the face just seconds from the end of the game and cost them the victory.
While Rodri leaves enormous boots to fill, yet again, the 23-year-old struggled to get anywhere near dominating the midfield.
After Rodri’s withdrawal, City were much less dominant and allowed Brentford into the game. Particularly in the second half, when Brentford managed to make the affair a bit more scruffy, which the visitors struggled with.
Rodri lasted less than half an hour on the pitch before feeling his hamstring
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The extent or severity of Rodri’s injury is unknown, but City have to learn to deal with his absence. They couldn’t do it last season, and they are clearly struggling again.
For Rodri, who looked devastated when hobbling off the field, it is yet another setback in his agonisingly long recovery from an ACL injury suffered a year ago.
While the 29-year-old certainly hasn’t looked completely back to his best, he still adds so much to this City team when on the field.
The problem is that they have become too reliant on him and simply struggle to cope without his presence. Guardiola and City fans alike will be hoping it is not another lengthy setback.
Sloppy Brentford
Keith Andrews has seen his Brentford team play much better
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While Manchester City were utterly dominant, particularly in the first half, the home side did not help themselves.
Sloppy passes, a lack of intensity and little threat going forward meant City were more than comfortable throughout much of the contest.
Even their expertise in set pieces seemed to desert them - often with poor deliveries or not even putting the ball into the box in the first place.
Keith Andrews’ side were better in the second half, and after the withdrawal of Rodri through injury, but it still was not enough.
Gary Neville on Sky Sports commentary even said he felt that Brentford looked tired and leggy, despite having an eight-day gap in between their last fixture and today.
Brentford have already hosted Chelsea at the Gtech Community Stadium this year and grabbed a point off them in a spirited and dogged performance - they were lacking any of that this afternoon.
Andrews would not have expected three points, but he would have hoped for more than what he saw. Having said that, he can go into the international break content with where his side sits at this early stage of the season.
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