Man City went through a series of 4 matches without winning after losing 0-1 to Aston Villa, and also lost 3rd place in the 2023-2024 Premier League rankings after round 15.
In round 15 of the 2023-2025 Premier League, Man City had a trip to Aston Villa’s stadium in the absence of many key players due to injury and suspension.
Therefore, even though they actively played offensively from the beginning, the defending champion could not create a superior position compared to the home team. Even Aston Villa was the side that controlled the ball and the pace of the match was better in the first 45 minutes.
Notably, coach Unai Emery’s students comfortably deployed the ball in the midfield, and at the same time had a completely overwhelming ratio of shots in the first half compared to Man City.
The trigger on “The Citizens'” attack, Erling Haaland, could not take advantage of two opportunities at the beginning of the match.
In the 45th minute, Douglas Luiz headed home from close range into Man City’s net. However, luckily for the away team, the linesman raised the flag to signal that the ball had already rolled out of bounds.
Entering the second half, the home team accelerated the pace with consecutive shots at Man City’s goal. Erling Haaland appeared helpless and isolated when the home team’s defense took good care of him.
With a patchwork squad, coach Pep Guardiola’s players fell into a passive position; they didn’t even have a notable shot on the ball.
The home team’s efforts to find a goal finally paid off in the 74th minute. Leon Bailey appeared in the middle and fired a powerful shot. Ruben Dias’s defensive effort caused the ball to change direction and enter the net before the helplessness of goalkeeper Ederson. Aston Villa took a 1-0 lead.
Having lost first, Man City still could not resist, even almost conceding a second goal, after Douglas Luiz’s curling shot hit the post in the 86th minute.
The home team’s superiority in this match was largely thanks to the player who scored the opening goal, Leon Bailey. He always tries his best to follow the ball, control the tempo with quick and short passes or launch dangerous passes when the opportunity comes.
In the remaining minutes, both teams failed to score another goal into the opponent’s net.
In the end, Man City lost 0-1 to Aston Villa. For the first time in 10 years, Aston Villa won against “The Citizens”.
At the same time, this is also the 4th consecutive match that coach Pep Guardiola and his team did not win (3 draws, 1 loss). This result helps Aston Villa take 3rd place from Man City, while the defending champion drops to 4th with 30 points, 2 points behind Aston Villa.