Manchester City v Leicester City Live Commentary & Result, 15/04/2023, Premier League

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	+/-	PTS	Form
1	MCI Manchester City	38	28	5	5	94	33	+61	89	L D W W W
2	ARS Arsenal	38	26	6	6	88	43	+45	84	W L L W W
3	MUN Manchester United	38	23	6	9	58	43	+15	75	W W W W L
4	NEW Newcastle United	38	19	14	5	68	33	+35	71	D D W D L
5	LIV Liverpool	38	19	10	9	75	47	+28	67	D D W W W
6	BHA Brighton & Hove Albion	38	18	8	12	72	53	+19	62	L D W L W
7	AVL Aston Villa	38	18	7	13	51	46	+5	61	W D W L L
8	TOT Tottenham Hotspur	38	18	6	14	70	63	+7	60	W L L W L
9	BRE Brentford	38	15	14	9	58	46	+12	59	W W W L W
10	FUL Fulham	38	15	7	16	55	53	+2	52	L D W W L
11	CRY Crystal Palace	38	11	12	15	40	49	-9	45	D D W L W
12	CHE Chelsea	38	11	11	16	38	47	-9	44	D L L D W
13	WOL Wolverhampton Wanderers	38	11	8	19	31	58	-27	41	L D L W L
14	WHU West Ham United	38	11	7	20	42	55	-13	40	L W L W L
15	BOU AFC Bournemouth	38	11	6	21	37	71	-34	39	L L L L W
16	NFO Nottingham Forest	38	9	11	18	38	68	-30	38	D W D W L
17	EVE Everton	38	8	12	18	34	57	-23	36	W D L W D
18	LEI Leicester City	38	9	7	22	51	68	-17	34	W D L L D
19	LEE Leeds United	38	7	10	21	48	78	-30	31	L L D L L
20	SOU Southampton	38	6	7	25	36	73	-37	25	D L L L L

That is all for today - thanks for tuning in!

City return to Champions League action next as they head to Germany to take on Bayern Munich in the second leg of their quarter-final fixture. Leicester return to action next Saturday as they take on Wolves at home.

Three first-half goals were the difference at the Etihad as City run out 3-1 winners against relegation-threatened Leicester. Stones' lovely strike and a Haaland brace laid the foundations for the win as City took their foot off the gas in the second half. Leicester grabbed one back through Iheanacho and things nearly got hairy towards the end as Maddison missed a great one-on-one opportunity before Iheanacho struck the post in added time. Those chances went begging for Leicester, though, and they remain in the relegation places while City keep the pressure on and move to within three points of Arsenal at the top of the Premier League.

90' + 3' FULL-TIME: MANCHESTER CITY 3-1 LEICESTER CITY

90' + 1' OFF THE POST! How different this game could have been. Maddison with a superb through ball which slices through the City defence and plays Iheanacho through. The striker takes it in his stride and beats Ederson but his effort cannons off the post. That's two golden opportunities at the death for Smith's side.

90' There will be three minutes of added time to end this second half.

Ç. Söyüncü

Yellow Card

89' Soyuncu is given a yellow card after a poor challenge on Alvarez.

P. Daka

W. Ndidi

87' Leicester make an attacking change as Ndidi makes way for Daka.

86' From the corner, Faes stoops low to get a header on goal. It strikes Gomez on the arm but the Spaniard's arm is down by his side and no penalty is given after a VAR check.

85' SAVE!! Goodness me, City are making a real hash of this and Leicester nearly have their second. It's sloppy from Dias and he gives away the ball cheaply at the back. Maddison latches on to the loose ball but Ederson makes a good save with his feet to deny the away side.

84' Leicester won four of their first five Premier League visits to Man City (L1) but have since lost five of their last six games at the Etihad (W1).

80' City have to be careful that they don't relax too much in these final ten minutes. It's still completely in their hands but one mistake and Leicester could leave the away side another goal closer to a monumental comeback.

79' OVER!! That is a real chance for Iheanacho and Leicester almost had their second. The striker has far too much room on the edge of the box and he gets the beating of Dias before shooting from range. It's always rising and goes just over the bar with Ederson well-beaten.

K. Ịheanachọ

Goal

75' GOOOAAALLL!!! LEICESTER HAVE ONE BACK! 3-1! City have taken their foot completely off the gas and it allows Leicester to grab a goal. Souttar rises highest from the corner and Ederson can only palm his header into the path of Iheanachọ who merely has to tap the ball into the empty net.

Sergio Gómez

J. Grealish

74' City's final change sees the excellent Grealish make way to a round of applause from the home crowd. Gomez is on to replace him.

71' A rare foray forward for Leicester and they should do better. Castagne breaks well down the right and his cut back lands at the feet of the substitute Praet but his effort is scuffed and it's a comfortable save for Ederson.

68' City win another corner and this time it is Grealish who strikes it from the edge of the box. Souttar does a good job of closing down the effort and it's blocked away.

65' Twenty minutes gone in this second half and Leicester have yet to have a shot on goal. City continue to play the ball around the park with great control.

D. Praet

K. Dewsbury-Hall

62' Dewsbury-Hall also comes off in midfield with Praet replacing him.

N. Mendy

Y. Tielemans

62' Leicester make another double change. The returning Tielemans is the first off with Mendy coming on in his place.

C. Palmer

K. De Bruyne

62' After that chance, City make another change. De Bruyne's game comes to an end as he's replaced by Palmer.

61' SAVE!! City nearly score from the corner. The home side take the set piece short and the ball is eventually worked out to Mahrez on the edge of the box. His left-footed strike is beautifully-hit but Iversen is equal to it with a fine save to tip it over the bar.

60' De Bruyne delivers the resulting free-kick but Laporte can't reach the cross at the back post as it turned away for a corner.

59' It's a loose touch from Thomas who then fouls Walker as he looks to recover the ball.

55' De Bruyne tries to play through Walker down the right but Thomas reacts well and gets in a good tackle to clear it behind goal. The corner is floated to Grealish on the edge but the Englishman can only slice his effort over the bar.

K. Phillips

Rodri

53' City turn to their bench again. This time Rodri is the departing individual with Phillips replacing him.

49' A slow start to this half with City knocking the ball about with relative ease.

46' After those changes, we are underway for the second half.

J. Álvarez

E. Haaland

46' There will be no hat-trick for Haaland as he is replaced at half-time by Alvarez.

M. Akanji

J. Stones

46' City also make two changes at the break. Goalscorer Stones comes off with Akanji replacing him.

K. Ịheanachọ

J. Vardy

46' Up front, Vardy is replaced by Ịheanachọ.

L. Thomas

V. Kristiansen

46' Leicester make two changes at the break. First off is Kristiansen with Thomas replacing him at left wing-back.

That is about as bad a half of football as Dean Smith could have hoped for in his first game as Leicester boss. Nobody expected them to win but it may now be a case about damage limitation in the second half and ensuring his squad doesn't get too demotivated from a heavy defeat.

A rampant first half from City have them three goals ahead against a sorry Leicester at half-time. It took just five minutes for City to break the deadlock with Stones firing home a thumping strike from the edge of the box. Then it was the turn of Haaland - first with a penalty after a handball from Ndidi and then a lovely finish after going through one-on-one with Iversen. Leicester created few openings and were penned in for the majority of the half while City continued their ruthless recent form with another super half of football.

45' + 2' HALF-TIME: MANCHESTER CITY 3-0 LEICESTER CITY

45' + 1' There will be two minutes of added time to end this first half.

Bernardo Silva

Yellow Card

45' Bernardo Silva harries Maddison after City give away the ball and it's a lazy challenge which results in the Portuguese midfielder receiving a yellow cad.

41' De Bruyne already has an assist but he is clearly keen to get a goal as well. Walker's header into the box is cleared away but only as far as the onrushing Belgian who strikes it first time. It's well-hit but it's always rising and goes wide of the right post.

39' Leicester send all their centre-backs forward and the clipped cross from Maddison is headed down by Souttar. The ball falls to his centre-back partner Faes but his effort is sliced comfortably over the bar.

38' Dewsbury-Hall makes a positive burst forward from midfield and wins a foul after he is barged over by the retreating Walker.

36' Grealish has been a livewire this game and he gets the beating of Castagne down the City left. He tries to clip a ball back into the box but Iversen is able to claim the ball easily.

34' Maddison creates some space having combined well with Vardy and Dewsbury-Hall. He cuts inside from the left but his effort is blocked before the retreating Grealish shows his defensive work-rate to win a goal kick for the home side.

30' Wave after wave of City attacks even after their third. Leicester are yet to register a shot on target and that doesn't look like changing anytime soon.

E. Haaland

Goal

25' GOOOOAAAAALLLL!!! HAALAND HAS TWO!! 3-0!! He is inevitable and Haaland has City's third. It was a good period of possession for Leicester but De Bruyne picks the pockets of Ndidi and City break with blistering pace. The Belgian threads it through to Haaland who takes a great touch before finishing past Iversen for his second and City's third. We've only played 25 minutes...

K. De Bruyne

Assist

25' Fantastic all-round play from De Bruyne, winning the ball back, driving up the pitch and then teeing up Haaland to finish.

21' Moments later, Vardy springs onto a through ball and fires into the side netting having rounded Ederson. Had it gone in, it would not have stood, though, as Vardy was in an offside position.

21' Leicester fashion their fast chance of the game as Dewsbury-Hall and Maddison combine well around the area. Maddison tries his luck from outside the box but it is blocked.

17' Tielemans bundles over Rodri and City have a free-kick wide on the attacking right. De Bruyne delivers but the delivery is poor and Leicester clear for a throw-in.

16' Just 10% possession for Leicester City after 16 minutes. No one was expecting them to get a result today but this is attack versus defence at the minute.

E. Haaland

Penalty Goal

13' GOOOOAAAALLL!!! CITY DOUBLE THEIR LEAD!! 2-0!! Haaland grabs the ball and fires past Iversen into the left corner. It wasn't sweetly struck but it was good enough to find the net. Another goal for Haaland and this could get ugly for Leicester with just 13 minutes played.

12' PENALTY!! Replays show it was a fairly obvious handball as Grealish's clipped cross struck the trailing hand of the Leicester midfielder. The referee heads over to the monitor, takes a look and awards the penalty.

10' Iversen fails to clear the corner properly and City almost capitalise but no one is on hand to turn the ball on target. City recycle the play and now there are calls for another penalty as the ball appears to strike the hand of Ndidi.

9' City continue to see all the ball after their opening goal. Grealish goes down in the box after a tangle with Faes. The referee waves away the protests and a corner is given.

Rodri

Assist

5' Rodri contests the header in the air and the ball bounces into the path of Stones who takes advantage with a lovely finish.

J. Stones

Goal

5' GOALLL!!! CITY OPEN THE SCORING!! 1-0!! From the corner, City have their opener with a lovely finish from Stones. Leicester fail to clear the ball properly and Rodri's header lands at the feet of Stones who unleashes a sweetly-timed hit on the bounce from the edge of the box. The ball flies past Iversen and into the back of the net. A nightmare start for Leicester.

5' The first glimpse of a chance for City as Kristiansen misjudges the flight of the ball and Mahrez's effort has to be blocked behind for a corner.

3' As expected, it's City with all the ball in these early stages.

1' Man City get this game underway.

Manchester City have won 10 of their last 12 Premier League games against Leicester City (L2), winning the last four in a row since a 5-2 home defeat in September 2020.

Smith makes four changes to the Leicester side that lost against Bournemouth last weekend. It's a switch to a back five with Souttar and Soyuncu welcomed back into the side. Tielemans and Dewsbury-Hall also come back into the side in midfield. Amartey drops to the bench while Harvey Barnes, Boubakary Soumare and Ricardo Pereira miss out altogether.

Guardiola makes three changes to the City side that won 3-0 against Bayern Munich. In defence, there are two changes as Walker and Laporte come in for Akanji and Ake. The other change is in midfield as Mahrez comes back into the side with Gundogan dropping to the bench.

LEICESTER SUBS: Mateus Tete, Nampalys Mendy, Luke Thomas, Patson Daka, Danny Ward, Wanya Marcal-Madivadua, Dennis Praet, Daniel Amartey, Kelechi Iheanacho.

LEICESTER CITY (3-5-2): Daniel Iversen; Harry Souttar, Caglar Soyuncu, Wout Faes; Timothy Castagne, Youri Tielemans, Wilfred Ndidi, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Victor Kristiansen; James Maddison, Jamie Vardy.

MAN CITY SUBS: Nathan Ake, Kalvin Phillips, Manuel Akanji, Cole Palmer, Sergio Gomez, Ilkay Gundogan, Julian Alvarez, Rico Lewis, Stefan Ortega.

MAN CITY (3-2-4-1): Ederson; Kyle Walker, Ruben Dias, Aymeric Laporte; John Stones, Rodri; Riyad Mahrez, Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, Jack Grealish; Erling Haaland.

Leicester, meanwhile, welcome former Aston Villa and Norwich manager Dean Smith into the dugout for his first game in charge after the sacking of long-time manager Brendan Rodgers. The former Premier League champions sit 19th in the table and are without a win in their last nine games in all competitions. Their last match saw them lose 1-0 against fellow relegation rivals Bournemouth but a shock win today would move them out of the relegation zone after Everton's loss earlier on Saturday.

There is plenty riding on this fixture for both sides and at both ends of the top. For City, a win would move them to within three points of Arsenal at the top of the table as they look to hunt down Mikel Arteta's side. Pep Guardiola's team have been imperious in recent weeks and have won their last nine games in all competitions including a comprehensive 3-0 home win against Bayern Munich in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday.

Hello and welcome to this live commentary for the Premier League fixture between Manchester City and Leicester City from the Etihad Stadium.

Manchester City v Leicester City Live Commentary, 15/04/2023

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