Leicester 0-2 Man City: Match report & talking points from unconvincing Cityzens victory | OneFootball

Manchester City earned a scratchy, unconvincing 2-0 victory away to Leicester City on Sunday afternoon to break a dreadful run of form.

Goals from Savinho and Erling Haaland on either side of half-time decided City's last match of 2024, but their hosts squandered numerous golden opportunities between those two converted strikes.

Despite Leicester's best efforts, the reigning top-flight champions held on to all three points which represented the club's first victory away from the Etihad Stadium in more than two months.

How the game unfolded

"We will come back," Pep Guardiola declared pre-game. City are back to winning ways, but still seem a pale imitation of their imperious selves.

The game quickly settled into a pattern which has become sickeningly familiar for City fans. While the defending champions racked up lashings of possession and set up camp in Leicester's defensive third, they proved to be dramatically susceptible to any vaguely organised forward thrust.

Leicester had the better chances of the opening 20 minutes, but it was City who took the lead. The out-of-sorts visitors strung together a rare move of cohesion, sneaking around and then behind the four-man line of blue-shirted midfielders with a sequence of passes that teed up Phil Foden for a shot from range.

Jakub Stolarczyk, making just the second top-flight appearance of his career, parried Foden's bouncing effort into the path of Savinho. The Brazilian blasted the visitors in front with a particularly cathartic effort. The summer arrival had failed with his first 27 Premier League shots of the season and was treated to a boisterous, if slightly ironic, chant of "He's scored a goal" from the travelling City contingent.

Ruud van Nistelrooy's hosts were not deflated by the deficit. If anything, taking the lead left Manchester City racked with even more angst as the threat of giving up another advantage seeped into the stitching of their sky blue shirts.

Leicester were not limited to sporadic counter-attacks, afforded time and space to construct dizzying passing sequences which were once a City signature. Facundo Buonanotte found himself on the end of two such moves, yet failed to take advantage on each occasion, striking a post in the first half. Even Pep Guardiola's most potent foe Jamie Vardy - the forward who has scored more goals against the Catalan's sides than any other player - proved to be uncharacteristically wayward, volleying over a close-range volley.

Erling Haaland had been wasteful himself throughout the opening hour, but belatedly doubled City's lead just as Leicester were building up a head of steam. A sharp shuffle of feet from substitute James McAtee created a rare pocket of space for Savinho to stand a cross up to the back post which Haaland headed in.

City's second win at any venue since the end of October took them up to fifth place in the Premier League table.

Check out player ratings from Leicester vs Man City here.

Pep Guardiola was out early for Manchester City's trip to Leicester / Carl Recine/GettyImages

"We're trying everything," City's beleaguered centre-back Manuel Akanji sighed pre-game. Yet, the team's collective attempts to win the ball back quickly have repeatedly failed. The feverish press which Guardiola once described as the "secret" to his side's success is completely broken.

Each time City lost the ball on Sunday, Leicester had oceans of room to spear into. That is nothing new for the deflated champions during this bleak spell, yet their passivity in settled play was even more staggering.

Leicester strung together 44 unbroken passes before Bilal El Khannous swung a cross into the box in the first half. The devilish delivery evaded three blue shirts and left Facundo Buonanotte knocking his forehead against the post. The Argentine would strike the woodwork later in the match and then came close to winning a penalty after another lengthy string of passes in the second half.

When faced with City's accommodating approach, the previously passive Leicester racked up season-high records for passes (530) and completion rate (93%).

Erling Haaland ends his drought

Erling Haaland ended a four-game goalless drought on Sunday / Catherine Ivill - AMA/GettyImages

'Scoring drought' is a relative term in football. Haaland had only gone four games without finding the net - which for most mere mortals is barely worthy of recognition - but the Nordic goal-gobbler is held to the lofty standards which he set himself. As City's number nine once pointed out: "Norwegian media when I don't score: 'Goalless!' That's the headline. That's how it is."

Those pesky sub-editors at Dagbladet may have been lining up a repeat of the familiar trusty title for much of Sunday's game. Haaland struck a tame effort with his considerably weaker right foot straight at Stolarczyk early on and dragged another on his left side wide in the first half. There was a blocked header and a general funk hanging over a striker who has criticised himself in recent weeks.

Nevertheless, Haaland kept ploughing forward and eventually got his just reward. At the halfway mark of the season, the supposedly struggling forward boasts the meagre tally of just 14 league goals - more than all but one Premier League player.

James McAtee stakes his claim to a starting spot

James McAtee played a key role in the buildup to Man City's second goal / Catherine Ivill - AMA/GettyImages

While Haaland produced a wry smile and Kevin De Bruyne violently punched the air on the edge of the box, a couple of sky blue shirts swarmed the diminutive figure of James McAtee. City's unheralded academy graduate came on for Phil Foden midway through the second half and impressed with every sharp touch of the ball.

It was McAtee's rapid change of direction which created the room for Haaland's match-sealing second goal. The 22-year-old also went close with a bending effort from range, had his name belted out by the away end and generally brought a much-needed burst of zip and fizz to the weary champions.

Despite being available for every match, the Salford-born schemer had only made two previous Premier League appearances this season - both of which arrived in stoppage time. Such minimal involvement led to reports of transfer interest from four Premier League clubs along with the likes of Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund. Guardiola might not be so keen on getting rid of McAtee just yet.

As the City manager gushed post-game: "He did everything good. The way he played and all the actions were good. He's proved he can play more and he's going to play more."