Full TimePosted at 90’+5′ Second Half ends, Manchester City 3, Leicester City 1.Post updatePosted at 90’+3′ Attempt missed. Riyad Mahrez (Manchester City) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right.Post updatePosted at 90’+2′ Corner, Leicester City. Conceded by Ruben Dias.Post updatePosted at 90’+2′ Attempt blocked. Kelechi Iheanacho (Leicester City) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.Post updatePosted at 90’+1′ Attempt saved. Kelechi Iheanacho (Leicester City) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.Post updatePosted at 90′ Corner, Leicester City. Conceded by Ruben Dias.
Manchester City maintained their winning streak with a dominant victory over relegation-threatened Leicester City, as Erling Haaland scored twice in the first 13 minutes of the match. The Premier League champions cut the gap to league leaders Arsenal to just three points, and Mikel Arteta’s men can re-establish their advantage when they face West Ham on Sunday. John Stones opened the scoring with a thumping effort from the edge of the box, before Haaland converted a penalty and added his second with a dinked finish 12 minutes later.
The hosts were in complete control throughout the game, and Daniel Iversen made a superb flying stop to deny Riyad Mahrez’s curling strike, the closest they came to a fourth goal in the second half. Dean Smith suffered a nightmare start in his first game in charge of Leicester, although Kelechi Iheanacho grabbed a 75th minute consolation and also hit the post against his old club. The Foxes remain deep in trouble at the wrong end of the table, sitting in 19th position and two points off safety.
Manchester City are on an impressive 10-game winning streak, and look on course to reach the last four of the Champions League after taking apart Bayern Munich in the first leg of the quarter-finals on Tuesday. They will face Sheffield United in the semi-finals of the FA Cup next Saturday, and Guardiola has urged his side to play with the right mentality and go for it when they travel to Bayern for the second leg this week.
The huge clash against Arsenal on 26 April could potentially be a title-decider at Etihad Stadium, with the visitors aiming to end their long top-flight trophy wait and stop their opponents from claiming three in a row. Haaland’s goals put his side 3-0 up after they were set on their way by Stones’ fabulous first-time finish, and extended his total to 32 in the top flight, drawing alongside Mohamed Salah’s record in a 38-game season with eight games still to play.
Leicester slumped to their 20th league defeat of the season, the same number as bottom-of-the-table Southampton. Jamie Vardy made his 300th Premier League appearance, but was given no supply and could not add to the eight goals he has scored against Manchester City before being replaced at the break. Youri Tielemans returned to the side after six weeks out with an ankle injury and defender Caglar Soyuncu made just his third league appearance of the campaign after falling out of favour under Brendan Rodgers.
Erling Haaland was named Player of the Match for his two goals, taking his tally to 47 in 40 games in all competitions. Smith believes that his players will be able to avoid relegation, however, and is confident that they have what it takes to get out of this situation. Manchester City’s juggernaut continues to roll on in their aim for a Treble of trophies, and Arsenal cannot afford any slip-ups knowing that their rivals are hitting form at the right time.