Manchester City will be hoping to end a wretched recent run as they travel to take on Leicester in their final fixture of 2024.
Pep Guardiola’s glittering and much-garlanded squad have won just once in their last 13 games, with their hopes of a fifth consecutive Premier League title in tatters and a slide down the table hastening.
A draw against Everton on Boxing Day represented another significant setback with the club’s problems rather illustrated by a tame penalty miss from the out-of-form Erling Haaland, with Guardiola admitting that investment may be needed in January to stop the rot.
Will a trip to the East Midlands offer respite? Leicester have endured their own tricky festive period after a promising start under Ruud van Nistelrooy, a 3-0 thrashing by fellow relegation-battlers Wolves followed by a somewhat more predictable defeat against Liverpool to leave them in the bottom three.
Follow all of the latest from the King Power Stadium in our live blog below:
Leicester vs Manchester City LIVE
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Leicester entertain Manchester City in the Premier League | Live on Sky Sports
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Defending champions have won just once in 13 games in horror recent run
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Ruud van Nistelrooy’s side sit in the bottom three after defeats to Wolves and Liverpool
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Leicester XI: Stolarczyk; Justin, Coady, Vestergaard, Kristiansen; Winks, Soumare; Buonanotte, El Khannouss, Mavididi; Vardy
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Man City XI: Ortega, Lewis, Akanji, Ake, Gvardiol, Kovacic, De Bruyne, Bernardo, Savinho, Foden; Haaland
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Kevin De Bruyne returns to starting line-up for Man City in only change
Leicester City FC 0 – 0 Manchester City FC
CLOSE! Leicester 0-0 Man City, 10 mins
14:42 , Luke Baker
Wow, what a let-off for Man City! They’re caught on the break, Vardy is clean through on goal and Ortega takes him out as he tries to round him.
It’s a clear penalty but the visitors are reprieved because Vardy was marginally offside from the ball through. Lucky, lucky Man City.
SAVE! Leicester 0-0 Man City, 8 mins
14:38 , Luke Baker
Probably should be 1-0 to Man City. De Bruyne with space down the right, found by a nice chipped pass from Lewis, the Belgian pulls the ball back for Haaland who hits it first time from 12 yards out but Stolarczyk sticks out a leg to make the save.
Either corner and that was in for Haaland!
Leicester 0-0 Man City, 6 mins
14:36 , Luke Baker
Nice move by Leicester and Mavididi has room on the right. He cuts in and tries to curl a shot into the far right corner but doesn’t bring it back and it goes well wide.
A slight warning for Pep Guardiola’s visitors though
Leicester 0-0 Man City, 5 mins
14:35 , Luke Baker
The pattern you’d expect from this match so far with Man City almost exclusively having possession in this opening five minutes. When they give the ball away, they immediately win it back and De Bruyne shoots from 25 yards but it’s harmlessly over the top.
Leicester 0-0 Man City, 2 mins
14:33 , Luke Baker
Foden out on the right with De Bruyne through the centre just behind Haaland for Cirt in the early going. I’m sure that will be fluid across the course of 90 minutes though
Savinho drives in from the left, straight at the Leicester defence but quickly runs out of ideas and a heavy touch takes it out for a goal-kick
KICK-OFF! Leicester 0-0 Man City
14:31 , Luke Baker
And we’re off at the King Power. Both teams wearing blue… Different shades at least, I suppose
Leicester v Man City
14:30 , Luke Baker
The teams are out on the pitch and kick-off is imminent in Leicester. Can the Foxes spring a shock or will Man City finally end their horror run by winning just a second match in their last 14?
Leicester v Man City
14:27 , Luke Baker
Only a few minutes until kick-off now. Here’s a reminder of the teams today.
Leicester XI: Stolarczyk; Justin, Coady, Vestergaard, Kristiansen; Winks, Soumare; Buonanotte, El Khannouss, Mavididi; Vardy
Man City XI: Ortega; Lewis, Akanji, Ake, Gvardiol; Kovacic, Bernardo; Savinho, De Bruyne, Foden; Haaland
Manchester City’s hearing looms over football in 2025 – and the ramifications will be seismic
14:22 , Luke Baker
A bit of pre-match reading here for you – our chief football writer Miguel Delaney has examined the charges against Man City and the impact that could have on football in 2025.
Man City’s hearing looms over football – and the ramifications will be seismic
Manchester City’s vulnerabilities during tough spell
14:15 , Jamie Braidwood
Manchester City have conceded 26 goals in all competitions since the start of November, the second most in Europe’s top five leagues behind Heidenheim’s 28.
Pep Guardiola’s side have also dropped 12 points from winning positions, which is already two more than the whole of last season.
Leicester vs Man City
14:06 , Luke Baker
The estimable Richard Jolly is our man on the ground at the King Power today – here’s his pre-match thoughts.
Pep Guardiola’s latest search for a solution has taken him back to Kevin de Bruyne, who starts after two games on the bench. Jamie Vardy, scorer of two hat-tricks against City in the Guardiola years, is fit to return for Leicester, who are without the injured (and excellent) Mads Hermansen in goal. Guardiola brings up 500 games in charge of City, something few expected when he arrived, but in the worst run of form in his reign.
Manchester City’s record against promoted sides
14:00 , Jamie Braidwood
Manchester City are unbeaten in their last 20 Premier League matches against promoted sides, winning 19 and drawing one.
This season, they’ve beaten Ipswich and Southampton at home. However, that 1-0 victory over the Saints came just before their horror run.
13:45 , Jamie Braidwood
Ruud van Nistelrooy said Leicester still have to be perfect to beat Manchester City despite Pep Guardiola’s struggles.
The Foxes were beaten 3-1 by Liverpool on Boxing Day and a third defeat in a row saw Van Nistelrooy’s side drop into the relegation zone.
“Everybody knows, when you look at the team and how they played (against Everton), I know the quality of that squad and manager so I am focusing on that and the quality we will face,” Van Nistelrooy said.
“We have to prepare for a great performance in our side. Being where we are we need to be spot on in all parts of football to get a result.
“For us all the games we are playing are massive. We know a certain amount of points are necessary and every second of every game is important.
“It is something which needs constant improvement and pressure to perform and get results. It is from game to game, we evaluate the game and make a gameplan to get a result against City.”
Kevin De Bruyne starts for Man City
13:30 , Jamie Braidwood
Kevin De Bruyne has scored or assisted in just one game for Manchester City since the start of September. That was in the 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest earlier this month, which is City’s only win in their last 13 games.
He was an unused substitute in the defeat at Aston Villa and got 16 minutes off the bench in the 1-1 draw against Everton on Boxing Day.
Leicester vs Man City team news and line-ups
13:20 , Jamie Braidwood
Kevin De Bruyne starts for Manchester City and replaces Jeremy Doku in their only change from the 1-1 against Everton on Boxing Day.
Jamie Vardy is fit to start for Leicester and comes in for Patson Daka, Jordan Ayew is suspended and is replaced by Facundo Buonanotte.
Leicester vs Man City team news and line-ups
13:16 , Jamie Braidwood
Leicester: Stolarczyk; Justin, Coady, Vestergaard, Kristiansen; Winks, Soumare; Buonanotte, El Khannouss, Mavididi; Vardy
Man City: Moreno, Lewis, Akanji, Ake, Gvardiol, Kovacic, De Bruyne, Bernardo, Savinho, Foden; Haaland
Leicester vs Man City team news
13:11 , Jamie Braidwood
Injuries have been a key factor in Manchester City’s stunning loss of form. We’ll have the team news from the King Power in the next few minutes. Jamie Vardy is expected to return for Leicester, but does he start?
Manchester City’s nightmare run
13:01 , Jamie Braidwood
Manchester City’s run of results, NINE losses in 13 games
L 1-2 vs Tottenham (A) – Carabao Cup
L 1-2 vs Bournemouth (A) – Premier League
L 1-4 vs Sporting (A) – Champions League
L 1-2 vs Brighton (A) – Premier League
L 0-4 vs Tottenham (H) – Premier League
D 3-3 vs Feyenoord (H) – Champions League
L 0-2 vs Liverpool (A) – Premier League
W 3-0 vs Nottingham Forest (H) – Premier League
D 2-2 vs Crystal Palace (A) – Premier League
L 0-2 vs Juventus (A) – Champions League
L 1-2 vs Manchester United (H) – Premier League
L 1-2 vs Aston Villa (A) – Premier League
D 1-1 vs Everton (H) – Premier League
‘I will not give up,’ insists Pep Guardiola
12:46 , Jamie Braidwood
Pep Guardiola says he will not quit as he looks to end Manchester City’s miserable run of form, with nine defeats and just one win in 13 games.
“I will try, I will keep going. Sometimes you think (the bad run) will be (ended) earlier or (it would be) easier to fix it, but others it takes more time.
“I will not give up. I want to be here. I want to do it and, with the situation that we have, we have to do it.
“Of course I want it, everyone wants it. I don’t want to disappoint my people in terms of the club, the fans, the people who love this club.
“I think all of us in our job want to do it well and please the people. That is undeniable, not a question mark.
“The biggest test is to come back again, but we have done that before.”
Early Man City team news
12:31 , Luke Baker
Ederson, John Stones, Kyle Walker and Jack Grealish are all doubts while Kevin De Bruyne could start after being on the substitutes bench against Everton.
Man City XI: Ortega; Lewis, Akanji, Ake, Gvardiol; Kovacic, Silva; Doku, De Bruyne, Foden; Haaland
Early Leicester team news
12:25 , Luke Baker
Jamie Vardy missed Leicester’s defeat at Liverpool on Boxing Day but could return to the starting XI on Sunday. However, centre-back Wout Faes is still a doubt.
Leicester XI: Stolarczyk; Justin, Coady, Vestergaard, Kristiansen; Winks, Soumare; Buonanotte, El Khannouss, Mavididi; Vardy
When is Leicester v Man City
12:20 , Luke Baker
Leicester vs Man City is due to kick off at 2:30pm GMT on Sunday 29 December at the King Power Stadium.
Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch the match live on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Premier League.
If you do not have a Sky Sports subscription, you can buy a NOWTV day pass.
If you want to stream major sporting events while you are travelling or watching from abroad you’ll need a VPN. Get the best VPN deals in the UK. Viewers using a VPN need to make sure that they comply with any local regulations where they are, and also with the terms of their service provider.
Everything you need to know about Leicester v Man City
12:15 , Luke Baker
Manchester City will be looking for their first win since early December when they travel to Leicester City this afternoon.
The Foxes took an early lead at league leaders Liverpool on Boxing Day but eventually succumbed to a 3-1 defeat which leaves them in the relegation zone.
Erling Haaland missed a second-half penalty on Boxing Day as City dropped more points in a 1-1 draw with Everton, extending their torrid run to one win in 13 matches. Pep Guardiola’s side are outside the top four heading into their final game in 2024.
Here’s everything you need to know:
Is Leicester vs Man City on TV? Channel and how to watch Premier League fixture
Leicester vs Man City
11:55 , Luke Baker
Good afternoon and welcome to The Independent’s coverage of Leicester vs Man City today. Surely this is the game where Pep Guardiol’a men finally end their dismal run? Surely…
