Manchester (England), Dec 2 (IANS): Manchester City defeated Bournemouth 3-1 to extend its unbeaten English Premier League start to 14 matches and strengthen its grip on the top spot.

Bernardo Silva opened the scoring shortly after the quarter-hour mark at City of Manchester Stadium here on Saturday when he pounced on the rebound after Bournemouth goalkeeper Asmir Begovic had saved a shot by Leroy Sane, reports Efe.

In the dying minutes of the first half, striker Callum Wilson drew Bournemouth level when he got on the other end of a cross by defender Simon Francis and headed the ball home.

City, however, regained the lead for good just 13 minutes into the second half off a shot by English midfielder Raheem Sterling, who became the only player in English Premier League history to score in each of his first six games against a single rival.

With 11 minutes to go before second-half stoppage time, midfielder Ilkay Gündogan netted City's third goal off a pass from Sane.

With the win, Manchester City remains undefeated with 12 wins, two draws and no losses and sits atop the league table with 38 points, five ahead of second-placed Liverpool.

Bournemouth suffered its sixth loss of the season and provisionally holds the ninth spot with 20 points.

They are just one point behind eighth-placed Leicester City, which defeated Watford 2-0 thanks to first-half goals from striker Jamie Vardy and midfielder James Maddison.