Manchester City Fight Back To Beat Leeds United At Etihad Stadium

 

Manchester City seized the stoppage time to claim an exhausting 3-2 victory against Leeds United at Etihad Stadium, restoring the Premier League title pursuit.

Pep Guardiola had been winless with his men in two consecutive games in all competitions. Losing to Leeds would have set his team back against the Premier League leaders, Arsenal. Phil Foden contributed a brace towards the victory, his first goals after three games in all competitions. 

It was in the first minute that the England forward opened the scoring. Receiving a cutback pass from Matheus Nunez, he tapped the ball into the net from inside the six-yard box. Nico O'Reilly facilitated the second goal from a corner. The aerial was headed into the reach of  Josko Gvardiol. who tapped the ball into the empty net. 

Leeds responded after the halftime break, following a defensive flop, that Dominic Calvert-Lewin capitalized on to score. The second followed in the 68th minute from Lukas Nmecha, who scored from a penalty drawn from Gvardiol's foul.  Unfortunately for the visitors in the injury time, Foden found space in front of the box and dazzled his way into position before steering home a left-footed shot. 

Leeds had been winless in their previous three Premier League games. A draw would have lifted Leeds out of the relegation. However, with the loss, they remain in the bottom (18th) with 11 points. 

Overview

Leeds lost a should-be draw to a needless defensive flop in the closing minutes. They had done well, making up for the two-goal deficit by restoring terms with City. They maintained good coordination in front of the box, but fatigue set in during the stoppages, and Foden seized the moment to lead the side back in the lead. 

For much of the time, Leeds had closed down the pressure from the left wing with two defenders keeping tabs on the flange. The right was not as effective in the second half. This had worked well until that began to loosen, and City were able to switch places. That was costly. In the end, it was a deserved victory for City.