Aguero scores in 300th game as City roar back to form

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Manchester City's Sergio Aguero celebrates scoring their first goal Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers

(Reuters) - Sergio Aguero marked his 300th appearance for Manchester City with a familiar landmark goal to set the resurgent Premier League champions on their way to a magnificent 5-0 win at Cardiff City on Saturday.

Aguero helped City rebound in emphatic fashion after their worst performance of the season in the home Champions League defeat by Lyon. A typical sharp, close-range finish from Bernardo Silva's pass saw him notch his 205th goal for the club.

Aguero's close-range strike just after the half-hour opened the floodgates with Silva himself heading home three minutes later and Ilkay Gundogan firing home a glorious third before the break to guarantee Cardiff's winless league start continued.

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Manchester City's Bernardo Silva in action with Cardiff City's Joe Ralls and Greg Cunningham Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers

City, then able to stroll as they extended their unbeaten league run to 12 matches, celebrated further when record signing Riyad Mahrez joined the party with two superb second-half goals, his first for the club.

The superb win left City still hot on the trail of Liverpool, who lead the league on a maximum 18 points, with the key goal from Aguero underlining just why City are so thrilled he has just signed a one-year contract extension.

The Argentine striker had said in March that he might leave City in 2020 because he wanted to end his career at former club Independiente but his new deal will keep City's all-time leading goalscorer at the club until he is 33.

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Manchester City's Sergio Aguero in action with Cardiff City's Joe Ralls Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers

The breakthrough goals for Mahrez, their 60 million pound ($78.45 million) summer buy from Leicester City, were also a particular boon as City moved on to 16 points.

The Algerian has had to be patient to break his duck but reckoned he always knew it was coming shortly.

"It took a while to arrive but I knew it would come. I will try to help the team as much as I can," he told Premier League TV.

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Manchester City's Sergio Aguero scores their first goal Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers

"I didn't know I'd now scored 50 goals in English football and I'm very happy to score my first goal for the team."

City were particularly keen to make up for their shock 2-1 loss to Lyon at the Etihad Stadium and almost tried too hard to make amends in the opening half-hour until, typically, it was Aguero who calmed them with a fine opener.

"We know it was difficult to play after the Champions League game but the manager told us to be ready for this game because it's never easy, especially away at Cardiff," said Mahrez.

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Manchester City's Sergio Aguero celebrates scoring their first goal REUTERS/Rebecca Naden

(Reporting by Ian Chadband, editing by Ed Osmond and Pritha Sarkar)

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Cardiff City's Harry Arter and Harry Arter looks dejected after Manchester City's first goal REUTERS/Rebecca Naden

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Manchester City's Bernardo Silva celebrates scoring their second goal Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Manchester City's Ilkay Gundogan receives treatment from medical staff REUTERS/Rebecca Naden

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Cardiff City's Joe Ralls is shown a yellow card by referee Michael Oliver REUTERS/Rebecca Naden

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Cardiff City's Bobby Reid looks dejected after Manchester City's third goal REUTERS/Rebecca Naden

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Manchester City's Riyad Mahrez celebrates scoring their fourth goal with team mates REUTERS/Rebecca Naden

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Cardiff City's Danny Ward in action with Manchester City's Fabian Delph REUTERS/Rebecca Naden

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Manchester City's Riyad Mahrez celebrates scoring their fifth goal REUTERS/Rebecca Naden

Soccer Football - Premier League - Cardiff City v Manchester City - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Britain - September 22, 2018 Manchester City's Riyad Mahrez celebrates scoring their fifth goal with Bernardo Silva, Raheem Sterling and John Stones REUTERS/Rebecca Naden