The defending champions Leicester hosted one of the title contenders Manchester City in a game that marked the revival of the former, and one that the latter would like to forget as soon as possible.
Pep Guardiola went to King Power Stadium having just been beaten soundly by Chelsea and within three minutes an error from his side gave Jamie Vardy his first league goal in eleven games.
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Andy King scored two minutes later, and Vardy added two more to give him his first hat trick with the champions. Two late goals through Aleksander Kolarov and Nolito made the scoreline more respectable but it was mostly negatives for Pep’s team as Ranieri’s men took home a much needed 3 points in an encounter that ended 4-2.
Take a look at the main talking points of this thrilling encounter
#1 Claudio Bravo proves that not everything coming out of Barcelona is good
Out of the eight shots on target that the former Barca keeper has faced, six of them have resulted in goals.Bravo might be good with his feet, but his shot stopping abilities are nowhere near the level of what you would expect from a goalkeeper of a top team.
Both the goals by Jamie Vardy were pretty good, but the positioning from Bravo in both situations was a bit off. Moreover, the Andy King goal from outside the box was something a keeper like David De Gea or Thibaut Courtois would have saved.
Guardiola bought a player in a position that City had no problems in, and now Joe Hart must be having a good laugh somewhere in Torino. Bravo needs to drastically improve for his and his team’s sake, as the importance of a good keeper, goes a long way, and Pep knows that.
#2 Jamie Vardy’s back to having a party
Having gone 10 games without a goal in the Premier League, Jamie Vardy looked at his absolute best today, as did his partner in crime Riyad Mahrez.
There were shades of last season as Mahrez set up Vardy for his second goal with a perfect one-touch pass that the Englishman calmly took past Bravo and then passed it into the net. His first goal was also a delightful finish, and the one to get the hat trick was as tight a finish as you’ll ever see.
A hattrick against one of the title contenders is never a bad thing for your confidence, and Vardy looked more confident than he had in a long, long time. Even Mahrez looked better than he had in any game this season so far, and his assist to the Englishman for Leicester’s third goal was a thing of beauty.
We will find out in the coming days whether Vardy and Co can keep up, but surely Ranieri could not have been happier to see his striker find form.
#3 Aguero and Fernandinho were missed
The red cards and subsequent suspensions for Sergio Aguero and Fernandinho could not have come at a worse time.
City kept misplacing passes in the middle and their errors led to the first goal inside three minutes which in turn opened the floodgates. Fernandinho, who has been the second most prolific passer in the league, was truly missed in the middle as no one seemed to be able to control the game in the centre of the park.
As for Aguero, even at his poorest, he is not a player you would bench what with his knack of getting into good areas and finding a goal, as his absence in the front left a hole in City’s attack. The final ball, the final touch, everything was lacking. There was only so much De Bruyne could do on his own as even Silva looked depleted, and the addition of Nolito late into the game was just that - too little too late.
Pep will only miss these two players more in the coming weeks and will hope that other oppositions do not give him so much trouble.
#4 Leicester set for revival
When you face Manchester City and the worst part of the game was not keeping a clean sheet, you know you’ve done something right. Leicester played the way they usually did last season, being clinical in front of goal despite not seeing much off the ball for most of the game, and defending resolutely for the most part.
An all-important 3 points from this game takes Leicester to 16 points and 14th on the table (with Middlesbrough having a game in hand). Although still not nearly good enough for the defending champions, Ranieri and his men will take it for the time being. Conceding two late goals will be something the Italian will look into, but overall the signs were positive.
Also with two months of no European football, Leicester have some breathing space and can possibly correct their horrendous start to the season especially since they have some relatively easy fixtures now that they can focus on.
This impressive performance and win gives the team something to smile about in this torrid domestic campaign and there is a possibility that it can become the catalyst for their revival.
#5 Manchester City’s defence will cost them big time
This is the first time in Pep’s career that his team has shipped 3 or more goals in two league games consecutively. Also, City have kept only ONE clean sheet in their last seventeen games in all competitions, which is an astounding stat and highlights all the negatives about their leaky defence.
Pep still has not found his perfect back four and the injuries to captain Vincent Kompany has not helped the team. £50 million signing John Stones looks shaky at best and the ageing full back pair Zabaleta and Kolarov are getting outrun and caught out of position too often. Just as was the case with Liverpool in 13/14, a brilliant attack carried them but the lack of defensive prowess cost them the ultimate prize.
Now four points behind the leaders, Chelsea and Arsenal, with the former having one game in hand, the Champions League-winning manager has to look at his defenders and think hard if he wants to mount a serious challenge for the title.
