Blues have no defence as they are ripped open
THE question City need to ask themselves after this Leicester defeat is will Ruben Dias be enough?
After months of failing to find the right deal for a centre-back target with pursuits of Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly and Sevilla’s Jules Kounde coming to nothing, Benfica’s Dias is set to strengthen the squad with his signing expected in the next week.
Given the manner of the 5-2 defeat for Pep Guardiola’s walking wounded, however, it is hard to think that one new arrival can solve all of their problems.
City’s coach has cut a gloomy figure from the off this season after preparations that can be best described as chaotic.
Any optimism taken from the 3-1 opening win over Wolves is now well and truly gone after less than a week as the Blues look to pick up the pieces from one of their most humbling home defeats of the Guardiola era.
Led by Kevin de Bruyne, the hosts had already shown their intent when, in the fourth minute of the game, they took the lead.
The Belgian’s corner dropped away from Eric Garcia and to the edge of the box when it was met on the bounce by Riyad Mahrez with the kind of dreamy thunderbolt that deserved Alan Partridge commentary, a sledgehammer on his weaker foot that couldn’t have been hit sweeter.
For all Guardiola’s gloom about having only 13 fit players available and no recognised strikers with Gabriel Jesus joining Aguero on the sidelines for up to a month, the goal was a reminder that this City team possesses superb quality and their first XI is a match for anyone. They had 81 per cent possession in the opening 15 minutes and looked dominant, with Leicester just trying to ride the storm.
The last time City found themselves so short of strikers was in December 2014 when their opponents were also Leicester. There, Edin Dzeko pulled up in the warm-up to join Sergio Aguero on the sidelines and leave rookie youngster Jose Angel Pozo to a bruising afternoon. Manuel Pellegrini admitted that ‘we’ll have to play another way’ but they could not and Chelsea soon pulled away in the title race.
It is a sign of the versatility Guardiola demands that he did not need to call on young Liam Delap but instead set his team up the way he did. Raheem Sterling was the nominal No.9 but it was a fluid attack and as Leicester sat back, the Blues pushed with a front five as Mahrez, De Bruyne, Foden and Fernandinho all pressed.
Yet as the first half wore on, the visitors began to get more joy from their plan of
counter-attacking, particularly down Benjamin Mendy’s side and before the half-time whistle two frailties that will be very familiar to anyone who watched them last season had made an unwelcome return.
For all their possession, City could not further threaten Kasper Schmeichel’s goal and found themselves level when they could not deal with a Leicester counter. Kyle Walker was on the wrong side of Jamie Vardy in the box and brought him down. The Leicester striker has scored more goals against this Guardiola team than any other player and extended that record with an emphatic finish from the spot.
The warning signs were there for the home team as soon as the game restarted. Within five minutes the manager had called for rookie Delap from the bench to give the team a focal point, with
City’s coach has cut a gloomy figure this season after preparations that can be best described as chaotic
Sterling increasingly ineffective and Mahrez and Foden offering little to support the attack. Fernandinho was the man withdrawn to see the end of the double pivot.
It certainly had an impact, just the opposite of what Guardiola had intended.
Timothy Castagne found too much space in behind Mendy and Nathan Ake and squared, where a brilliant improvised flick from Vardy sent the ball past Ederson.
Worse was to follow minutes later as Vardy earned another penalty as he nicked in ahead of Garcia.
City were shell-shocked. For all their inconsistencies over the last 12 months, they had been excellent at home. Their last defeat at the Etihad Stadium came in Jaunary in a cup game and they had won their last seven by an aggregate 26-1.
Here, though, they had no response as Leicester cut them open again and again.
James Maddison came off the bench and, as Garcia backed away, floated it wonderfully over Ederson’s head to add further misery to the Blues.
Ake tried to add a modicum of respect to the scoreline as he nodded home from a corner, but then another moment of madness from Mendy handed Leicester their third penalty of the afternoon, with Youri Tielemans adding a fifth goal for the visitors.
Where do City go from here?
They only have one Premier League game to get through before the international break - Leeds away - and Aleks Zinchenko and Aymeric Laporte were back in the squad for this game; Laporte at least should improve the team.
So too should Dias, but it is a lot to expect the new man to instantly turn things around.
Getting the right centre-back pairing does not look enough of a fix either for a team that fell apart so worryingly in this game.
If they are to challenge Liverpool and others for the title, further additions look necessary on the back of this result and the gloom that has accompanied the start of the campaign. away with the game.
IF Guardiola follows the same formula as last week, Cole Palmer will make his City debut at Burnley on Wednesday night.
The 18-year-old Wythenshawe lad was on the bench yesterday and six of the seven subs at Wolves last Monday started against Bournemouth in the Carabao Cup three days later – the exception was Nicolas Otamendi, who Guardiola said had ‘niggles’ but, it seems, was actually on the verge of a move to Benfica.