By Emmanuel Ebimoh
The story of the 2020/21 English Premier League season is slowly metamorphosing into one that would be written in gold on the annals of history and remembered for many years to come. The revolution on the pitch has surely been of the highest quality, but the surprises and heartbreaks have become the icing on every match so far this season. With the mighty falling like pack of cards and the underdogs roaring without fear or regret, we are in for some long-lasting football memories.
With just 3 weeks into the new EPL season there has been a total of 177 goals scored and three different hat-tricks scorers, the latest on the list being the mercurial Jamie Vardy of Leicester City, after his team trashed Manchester City, 5-2 in today’s game. Nothing would have prepared football fans for the unprecedented surprise from the clash between Manchester City and Leicester City at the Etihad Stadium.
It was nothing short of a football spectacle. Manchester City started the game brighter as they took the lead in the 4th minute from a thunderbolt shot by Riyad Mahrez. A perfectly lofted corner from Kevin De Bruyne was headed out of the box by a Leicester defender but only as far as Mahrez who was unmarked just inside the box. The ball bounced and steadied perfectly for him and he unleashed an unstoppable riffle with his right foot into the top left corner of the post, leaving goal keeper, Ederson with no chance at all.
After the goal, Manchester City seemed to have gone on to dominate the game with over 80% of the possession in the opening 25 minutes, but it was Leicester that would come out with the next goal in the 37th minute. Harvey Barnes ran the ball down the pitch and put a sublime ball through to Vardy who was brought down, without any argument, by Kyle Walker. Referee Michael Oliver pointed to the spot for a penalty kick and Jamie Vardy stepped up to score the equaliser for Leicester.
Vardy would go on to score his second goal of the game with a cheeky, ostentatious touch that left Ederson in no man’s land in the 54th minute of the game.
The third goal came four minute later when Manchester City’s defender Eric Garcia tripped Vardy in the box for another penalty. Again, Jamie Vardy made no mistake from the spot as he coolly placed the ball in the bottom right corner of the net with a low drive for his hat-trick. Substitute, James Maddison gave Leicester the fourth goal with a masterfully curled shot, in the 77th minute.
Although Nathan Ake pulled a consolation goal for City in the 84th minute, Leicester City made sure to score their 5th goal of the gaame for an emphatic 5-2 thrashing of Pep Guardiola’s team. It’s the first time Guardiola as a coach would concede 5 goals in any of his club.
In the other games played during the weekend, Manchester United scrambled for a 3-2 victory over Brighton, while Chelsea were lucky to get a point in a pulsating 3-3 draw against West Brom. Everton continued their 100% winning start to the season with a 2-1 victory over Crystal Palace, while Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham were held to a 1-1 draw by Newcastle United.
There will be another clash tomorrow at Anfield as Champions, Liverpool, will hope to come out smoking against the Gunners of Arsenal. It’ll surely be a cracker to anticipate.
