Jack Grealish scored his first Premier League goal in nearly 16 months as Manchester City defeated Leicester City at the Etihad Stadium, moving into fourth place and pushing Leicester closer to relegation.
Blues manager Pep Guardiola was watching from the stands due to a touchline ban, but he did get to see Grealish score. The goal came in the second minute when Grealish finished off a cutback from Savinho.
Many home fans had not yet taken their seats, as they were participating in a protest against expected season ticket price increases and a new commercial agreement with ticket resale agency Viagogo.
Omar Marmoush, starting in place of the injured Erling Haaland, added a second goal just before the half-hour mark. He scored with a first-time shot that went in off the underside of the bar after Leicester goalkeeper Mads Hermansen failed to catch a chipped ball from Ruben Dias into the penalty area.
Leicester’s situation is dire; they have now lost 14 of their last 15 league matches and sit 12 points adrift of safety, with only eight games left to avoid an immediate return to the Championship. They have become only the fourth team in English top-flight history to lose seven consecutive matches without scoring and have conceded the first goal in 25 of their 30 games. They are still yet to keep a clean sheet away from home.
Leicester’s best chance to end their goal drought came early in the match when Bilal El Khannouss attempted a curling shot from just outside the penalty area. For a moment, it seemed it might score, but it ultimately drifted wide.
Manchester City has now recorded seven consecutive league victories against Leicester, so the Foxes don’t need to perform as poorly as they did in this match for City to come out on top. Although there are still many matches left in the season, it is difficult to see how Leicester can avoid relegation, which could be confirmed before the end of April.
