Manchester City vs Leeds: The defending Premier League champions are purring after flexing their might for the world to see in a 7-0 thrashing of Leeds at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday.
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Six different players scored in the game, as Kevin De Bruyne bagged a brace, Jack Grealish got his second Premier League goal of the season and Phil Foden took his tally to four, among others.
Manchester City (41 points) remain atop the Premier League table after growing their lead to four points and cutting Liverpool goal-differential advantage from 9 to 2 — a potentially key moment in the title race.
Manchester City vs Leeds final score, stats, results
Final score: Manchester City 7, Leeds 0
Goal scorers: Manchester City (Foden 8', Grealish 13', De Bruyne 32', 62', Mahrez 49', Stones 74', Ake 78'), Leeds (None)
Shots: Manchester City 31, Leeds 6
Shots on target: Manchester City 15, Leeds 3
Possession: Manchester City 64%, Leeds 36%
3 things we learned - Manchester City vs Leeds
1. Manchester City exact some revenge: A season ago, Manchester City, the eventual Premier League champions, were beaten once and drawn once by newly promoted Leeds. They were one of only two sides (along with Manchester United) that Manchester City failed to beat at least once last season. There was much discussion about that fact leading up to Tuesday’s clash, and perhaps it did Leeds no favors.
2. De Bruyne slots right back in: De Bruyne was out of the starting lineup for five straight Premier League games after testing positive for COVID-19 in early November and slowly making his way back in recent weeks. He made his first Premier League start in five weeks on Tuesday, and looked like he’d never been away. His fitness levels likely aren’t where they need to be just yet, as he recovers from a respiratory illness, but adding even 80 percent of De Bruyne’s best is enough to elevate a side that was already proving itself to be truly special.
3. Bielsa’s seat quickly warming: After finishing 9th in their first season back in the Premier League, Leeds are currently 16th (five points clear of the relegation zone) and haven’t won back-to-back PL games all season. They didn’t win a single game in August or September, and are currently winless halfway through December. You can’t go that long, on multiple occasions, without a win and expect to stay in your current job forever, just as Leeds will not stay in the Premier League without a sharp turnaround.
Man of the Match: Kevin De Bruyne - The quality of goals scored alone make the Belgian genius an easy choice for MotM.
Manchester City vs Leeds highlights
Phil Foden bounces home Man City’s wacky opening goal (video)
Moments earlier, Bernardo Silva pushed one of the misses of the season wide of an open goal’s post, but the chances kept coming and Foden managed to force this one through a sea of bodies, somehow.
Jack Grealish heads home Riyad Mahrez’s cross for 2-0 (goal video)
Grealish isn’t typically who’d you expect to find atop the six-yard box as the ball is whipped into the box from out wide, but Mahrez picked out the correct forehead pore to bank it in for a 2-0 lead.
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Kevin De Bruyne squeezes it in near post to make it 3-0 (goal video)
Typically the playmaker sliding the through ball into the channel, De Bruyne looked plenty comfortable taking this first-time effort, courtesy of Rodri, with his weaker left foot.
Riyad Mahrez slots goal no. 4 past Illan Meslier (video)
It’s really something to see the nonchalance with which Mahrez cut inside from the right wing, put the ball on his favored left foot (the whole world knows what he’s doing, every time he does it) and rolled it into the far corner from the edge of the box. Football isn’t actually this easy, even if Manchester City make it look that way.
Kevin De Bruyne makes it 5-0 with laser strike (goal video)
Maybe De Bruyne’s ramping up period won’t take quite as long as first thought…
John Stones scores goal no. 6 on try no. 3 (goal video)
If at first second you don’t succeed, try, try again. Credit to Meslier for making the first two saves. Shame on the rest of the Leeds players for not coming to help.
Nathan Ake adds the extra point for 7-0 (goal video)
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