Manchester City defeated West Ham 3-1 on Saturday, preserving their perfect start to the Premier League campaign.

And it was Jeremy Doku (£3.4m), who, with a superb solo goal just a minute after the break, served as the spark for the comeback in the second half.

The treble-winners paid £55.5 million for the 21-year-old at the tail end of the summer transfer window, and the young player made a statement with his performance.

Pep Guardiola commented on the situation following the final horn: “It was an unbelievable game. He could go one-on-one and was a great winger with the ball. Not only that, but he also has the ability to predict when to pass to the following player. I was overjoyed.

It was intriguing that the esteemed tactician stressed Doku’s status as a “proper winger” and his desire to compete against Vladimir Coufal (£2.5m) on both sides.

Since moving to the Etihad, many supporters feel Jack Grealish (£4.4m) doesn’t take enough chances in possession, therefore this has mostly disappeared from his game.

While Grealish’s individual highlights may have been constrained by his growing awareness of Guardiola’s demands, the 28-year-old played a significant role in City’s greatest-ever team campaign in 2022–23.

Nevertheless, Doku demonstrated on Saturday how a nimble, assured dribbler who shines in one-on-one matches may assist Guardiola’s team in breaching a rigid defense.

Complex passing schemes are all well and good, but occasionally it’s worthwhile to assess an opponent’s full-back’s capacity to defend in lone circumstances, and the Belgian international is well-suited to conduct such a test.

Although he is still very much a raw talent, athletes in his position can profit from inexperience, and fearlessness is a positive side effect.

On Saturday, only Doku attempted more than three dribbles on either side, and he was successful on five of his eight attempts.

Doku’s electrifying performance against the Hammers obviously contributed to the Dream Team’s victory as, in the end, he scored 12 points.

He shares the top-scoring midfielder spot in Gameweek 5 with James Ward-Prowse (£3.8m) and Douglas Luiz (£2.6m), as of this writing.

The former Rennes winger would have taken the top spot entirely without Erling Haaland’s (£8.2 million) missed opportunity to provide him a well-deserved assist; the Norwegian poacher missed numerous golden chances before scoring his usual goal.

The former’s debut against Fulham before the international break, according to Doku and Guardiola, was “shy,” but his most recent performance was full of confidence, and Dream Team managers would have taken notice.

Gaffers ought to be aware by now that when it comes to City assets, they should follow the rules.

Consider Julian Alvarez (£4.3m), who was previously impractical due to the time he spent on the sidelines serving as Haaland’s replacement. This season, the World Cup winner has emerged as one of his team’s most important players in the No. 10 position, and he has 38 points to show for it.

Similarly, if Doku is given a run of games on the left wing (Grealish is now out due to injury), he might end up being a wise choice.

Only 0.8% of teams now have the intriguing midfielder, making him one to watch.