**Recap**
Leicester City were defeated by Manchester City at the Etihad on Wednesday evening by a score of 2-0. First-half goals from Jack Grealish and Omar Marmoush gave the hosts an insurmountable lead. Leicester were unable to get a touch for long periods of the second half and never looked like scoring, let alone overturning the deficit.
We’ve suffered heavier defeats, but few have been more comprehensive or humiliating. The Foxes took two shots, neither of which were on target. The hosts played with us for the entire second half, playing keep-away and giving the impression they could have scored more had they wanted to, but there was no need.
Perhaps that’s unfair. The wingback system did give up chances in the first half, but only one of which resulted in a goal. The other was a dreadful error by Mads Hermansen, who spilled a chip into the path of an attacker. Other than that, the defending was solid. Sure, that’s very much a “other than that, how was the play Mrs. Lincoln?” situation, but the defending wasn’t disastrous.
That attack, on the other hand? There was none. If it’s possible to have a negative xG, we would have done it. There was nothing. We didn’t have the ball and when we did, we knocked it around the back. Nothing to see here. Move along.
It was awful. This team is going down.
**3 Takeaways**
* Wlifred Ndidi is, in my opinion, one of the very few players who deserves to be in the top flight next year.
* I remain convinced that letting Steve Cooper go was the right decision; I remain baffled by the decision to bring in van Nistelrooy.
* I am starting to suspect that the list of managers who _wanted_ to come here was shorter than we knew.
The defeat leaves us 19th on the table with 17 points from 30 matches. We’re 12 points behind Wolves with 8 matches to play. These are dark times. The fixture list doesn’t make things any brighter:
* 7/4 Newcastle
* 12/4 at Brighton and Hove Albion
* 20/4 Liverpool
Sigh.
Leicester City: Hermansen, Faes, Coady, Thomas, Justin, Ndidi, Soumare, Kristiansen, El Khannouss, Daka, Vardy
Manchester City: Ederson, Nunes, Dias, Gvardiol, O’Reilly, Gonzalez, Gundogan, Savinho, Grealish, Doku, Marmoush
**Key Moments and Notes**
2’- GOAL! Doku muscles his way through the midfield and finds Savinho in the channel. He pulls it back for an unmarked Grealish who tucks home from the spot as Soumare was far too late trying to recover. Too easy for the hosts.
10’- The Foxes are struggling to get out of their own area. They’re knocking it around well, but there’s they always seem right on the edge of a costly turnover and they’re offering nothing going forward.
15’- Leicester are defending well right now but already down a goal, that’s not going to be enough.
17’- Close! Ndidi gets into space down the left. He tees up El Khannouss from distance and the Moroccan tries to curl it inside the far post. It’s very close and I don’t think Ederson was going to get there.
30’- GOAL! An absolute gift from the Foxes. A chip over the defense should be dealt with by Faes or taken by Hermansen, but it’s neither. The Danish keeper spills it and Marmoush blasts home off the bar.
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34’- Close! Savinho gets to the line again and this time pulls it back for Marmoush. He has ages to pick his spot, but he only manages to hit Faes’ chest.
35’- Vardy’s in the book for a frustration foul on Marmoush. There’s less in it than it originally looked, but it’s still worthy of a yellow.
36’- Doku goes down in the box and screams for a penalty against Justin. There was zero contact. Shameless.
38’- Close! Hermansen does very well to get a hand to a shot headed for the top netting and turn it over. Savinho must be wondering how that didn’t go in.
45+2’- The Foxes get their first touch inside the Manchester City box as Faes heads on a long throw from Thomas. It comes to nothing.
46’- The Foxes make one change at the half, with Oliver Skipp on for Vardy. Not what I would have done with a two-goal deficit, but my opinion counts for very little indeed.
48’- Grealish lines up a shot but kicks El Khannouss instead. He screams for a penalty. The commentators charitably say he probably thought he was fouled even though he clearly wasn’t.
59’- The hosts are seeing three-quarters of the possession so van Nistelrooy decides to change things up. Facundo Buonanotte and Caleb Okoli are on for El Khannouss and Kristiansen.
65’- Savinho gets his shirt and shorts pulled three times before losing the ball and doesn’t get the call. He’s upset and he as every right to be.
72’- Justin goes into the book for hauling back Marmoush. Yep. No argument.
76’- Ricardo is on for Soumare which I love to see, but...is that a change that’s going to get us back in the match? In fairness, the change that would get us back in the match probably doesn’t exist.
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80’- Jordan Ayew is on for Daka. If you think I’m losing enthusiasm for this, you’re right.
90+whatever’- It’s over. A whimper, not a bang.