LONDON, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- Erling Haaland set another milestone as Manchester City battled past Napoli 2-0 in their Champions League opener, with the Norwegian becoming the fastest player to reach 50 goals in the competition.

Haaland needed just 49 games to achieve the feat, heading in Phil Foden's clever pass in the 56th minute to put City ahead. Nine minutes later, Jeremy Doku added a second to seal the victory.

The night also marked Kevin De Bruyne's much-anticipated return to the Etihad after leaving the club in the summer following 10 years of service. Greeted warmly by City fans, his comeback lasted only 26 minutes before Napoli coach Antonio Conte substituted him after Giovanni di Lorenzo was sent off for bringing down Haaland as the last defender.

City dominated from the start but were repeatedly denied by Napoli goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic, who produced a string of first-half saves. The Serbian stopped efforts from Tijjani Reijnders, Foden and Rodri, clawed away headers from Nico O'Reilly and Ruben Dias, and even scrambled a deflected shot from Reijnders off the line.

The breakthrough came after the interval when Haaland struck his record-setting goal, before Doku's quick finish ensured the defending champions opened their campaign with three points. The result also left former Manchester United pair Scott McTominay and Rasmus Hojlund enduring a frustrating return to Manchester. ■