Man City got the boost they needed vs Luton - and it was off the pitch

Manchester City recorded a third straight Premier League win with a 5-1 triumph over Luton Town at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Back on home soil after a midweek trip to Spain to face Real Madrid in the first-leg of their Champions League quarter-final, City made light work of last season's Championship play-off final winners. After being given a helping hand inside just two minutes, the Blues produced a glut of goals late on to put plenty of gloss on the scoreline.

With both Arsenal and Liverpool not in action until Sunday, the win moved City back to the top of the Premier League table, giving them yet more confidence to take into Wednesday night's second-leg against Madrid at the Etihad. The tie is evenly balanced at 3-3 after a breathtaking 90 minutes in Spain and both sides will fancy their chances of progressing to the last four.

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Manager Pep Guardiola had to contend with a defensive shortage ahead of last week's first-leg, travelling to the Spanish capital without both Kyle Walker and Nathan Ake. Josko Gvardiol was initially a doubt but was deemed strong enough to start.

Both Walker and Ake, however, made the cut against Luton, being named on what was a star-studded bench. They each joined the likes of Jack Grealish, Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden and Rodri in taking up a watching brief.

Guardiola's selection, unsurprisingly, was made with half an eye on the upcoming reunion with Carlo Ancelotti's side. City, regardless of the XI fielded, would have felt confident of getting the better of a side who arrived in