Pep Guardiola celebrated 500 games in charge of Manchester City with a return to winning ways — but yet again the champions were far from their best.
Savinho’s first goal for the club gave them a half-time lead before Leicester City had a string of chances to restore parity. Erling Haaland, who had fluffed three good opportunities, made the game safe in the 74th minute when he headed in Savinho’s cross.
Savinho gave City the lead in the 21st minute when Jakub Stolarczyk pushed out Phil Foden’s shot, and the Brazil winger fired home from a tight angle.
Haaland could have added a second after a solo run but Leicester were always a threat and Facundo Buonanotte headed against the post after hesitant defending.
Leicester continued to push for an equaliser with Manuel Akanji clearing a James Justin effort off the line after a free kick caused chaos and Jamie Vardy poking over from close range. But Haaland made it two when Savinho crossed from the left and the Norwegian headed the ball down and into the corner.
Tim Spiers and Anantaajith Raghuraman analyse the talking points from the King Power Stadium.
Can Savinho now add more goals?
The finger of blame for City’s recent ineptitude has tended to point towards their wafer-thin defence. And rightly so — they have been vulnerable in the extreme, particularly on the counter, contributing to Guardiola’s side losing their aura of invincibility.
However, there has also been a noticeable decline in their lack of goals, not just from Erling Haaland (two Premier League goals since October) but across the board.
This time last year, City had seven players who had scored more than two goals in the Premier League. This year, only three have reached that mark (Haaland, defensive midfielder Mateo Kovacic and defender Josko Gvardiol).
Savinho, along with Phil Foden (one league goal), Jack Grealish (none), Ilkay Gundogan (none), Matheus Nunes (none), has contributed nowhere near what would be expected in front of goal, with none from 23 appearances in all competitions going into this game.
Savinho after getting off the mark (DARREN STAPLES/AFP via Getty Images)
Here he finally got off the mark, ending a sweeping City move through Leicester midfield with a smart finish after Foden’s effort had been kept out.
It was his 54th shot in all competitions this season. City will hope the man wearing Riyah Mahrez’s No.26 shirt can now start to contribute regularly.
Savinho pounces and Man City lead! 💥 pic.twitter.com/k8pQmq3WkC
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 29, 2024
And for readers in the US:
Savinho nets his first goal for Manchester City to give them a crucial lead in Leicester. 👏
📺 Peacock | #LEIMCI pic.twitter.com/kzwt8NufxE
— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) December 29, 2024
Tim Spiers
Is Haaland due to go on a scoring run?
For someone approaching 20 goals in all competitions before New Year’s Day, you wouldn’t exactly say Haaland needed a goal, but, well, after scoring just once in seven games, he did.
City had been on the ropes far more than they needed to be here, owing to that now-familiar fragility in their own box which almost cost them when Vardy should have equalised just a few minutes before the clinching goal of the game.
Haaland had almost scored a very unorthodox Haaland goal earlier in the game when he galloped from 40 yards, taking on four players before shooting narrowly wide.
But when it did arrive this was classic Haaland — drifting off his man, staying onside and meeting the cross with a magnificent leap and header past a helpless goalkeeper. The away end celebrated with real meaning — after a tumultuous couple of months, this felt pretty important.
Haaland heads in the second (Michael Regan/Getty Images)
And the contribution of James McAtee in the build-up, shimmying past two players before the ball was worked to Savinho for a cross, shouldn’t be overlooked earlier. After the goal, it was McAtee’s name they were singing.
Tim Spiers
Signs of progress in midfield?
In each of their three league games City scored first but could not find a second goal, ultimately failing to win any of those matches.
That trend looked set to repeat itself against Leicester, who were able to bypass the visitors’ midfield on multiple occasions with just one or two passes thanks to Bilal El Khannouss and Buananotte, with Stephy Mavididi offering a threat from wide areas as well.
Vardy was caught offside from promising positions twice in the first half in addition to forcing a save from Stefan Ortega following a Gvardiol error. Vardy was also the recipient of Leicester’s best chance of the match, hooking a cross from Mavididi over the crossbar in the 68th minute.
While Leicester did create a few opportunities, Man City’s overall out-of-possession approach showed improvements from previous matches.
They retreated a bit from their high press but stayed organised, mopped up spaces in the midfield well and were more convincing in duels, with Bernardo Silva, Kevin De Bruyne and Mateo Kovacic all impressive.
That eventually allowed Man City to stay ahead until excellent skill from substitute McAtee allowed Savinho to set up Haaland for the clincher in the 74th minute. From there on, Guardiola’s team controlled proceedings as Leicester pushed numbers forward in search of a goal, picking up a much-needed win.
Anantaajith Raghuraman
What next for Man City?
Saturday, January 4: West Ham (H), Premier League, 3pm UK, 10am ET
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(Top photo: Savinho and Haaland celebrate the second goal. DARREN STAPLES/AFP via Getty Images))
