Ipswich Town 0 Manchester City 6 - Blues hit into City at the wrong time as Phil Foden and Kevin De Bruyne conduct the orchestra
Ipswich Town fell to their joint heaviest Premier League and home defeat as champions Manchester City fully signalled their resurgence with a crushing 6-0 victory at Portman Road this afternoon.
Phil Foden made it five goals in his last three league games with two close-range finishes in the first half making it a second brace in successive matches.
Mateo Kovacic’s drilled effort in between, on the half-hour mark, gave Pep Guardiola’s side a 3-0 lead at the break.
And the second period proved to be a repeat performance with the lively Jeremy Doku (49’), Erling Haaland (57’) and substitute James McAtee, via a 69th minute header, adding their names to the scoresheet.
It equalled Liverpool’s 6-0 victory at Portman Road in February 2002, with the humbling at the hands of City the biggest margin of defeat since that day.
It leaves Town in the final spot in the relegation zone, level on points with Wolverhampton Wanderers but now with a far inferiror goal difference ahead of the latter playing at Chelsea tomorrow night (8pm) while Man City rise to fourth on goal difference from Newcastle United.
Town had their moments in the first half before the game got away from them with Hutchinson going closest as Haaland diverted his goalbound shot over the bar while a Dara O’Shea header found the hands of Ederson, who had come back into the City side in their four changes.
Kieran McKenna also went for fresh legs following Thursday’s 2-0 home defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion with only Dara O’Shea remaining of his back three as January loan signing Ben Godfrey and Cameron Burgess came in for Luke Woolfenden and Jacob Greaves.
With Kalvin Phillips unable to feature against his parent club, Sam Morsy came back into the engine room with Ben Johnson replacing Wes Burns and Jack Clarke for Nathan Broadhead.
Town made a promising start with a driving run down the right from Godfrey ending with Matheus Nunes conceding an unnecessary corner from Morsy’s deep delivery within three minutes before Ruben Dias, making a surprise injury return, headed over his own crossbar under pressure from Burgess.
There was another nervous moment for the away end to witness in front of them as former player Delap turned inside Dias in the area after a strong run from Jack Clarke before the England Under-21 striker saw his shot blocked.
Despite dominating the early possession stats, the champions did not have their first sight of goal on the quarter-of-an-hour mark when Kovacic sent Erlng Haaland bearing down on goal with an excellent threaded pass through the middle before Christian Walton came out and managed to turn it out for a corner with a high hand clawing it away.
A loose pass soon after from Burgess saw Foden go on to have a shot blocked in the area before Kovacic lifted the loose ball well over the bar.
Hutchinson saw a fierce effort knocked over the bar by a flick off Haaland’s head from a pulled back Leif Davis free kick to the edge of the area before O’Shea got up highest to head Ben Johnson’s corner straight at Ederson as an even game passed the mid-way marker in the first half.
But the champions got themselves in front in the 27th minute when Foden showed great control from a De Bruyne cross, after he had sprayed the ball out to Doku himself, before nudging it past Walton from six yards out.
Looking for a quick response, Delap twisted and turned in the box before sending a low effort too close to Ederson.
Town then found themselves 2-0 down after City’s next foray forward, with Foden laying Doku’s pass off across the edge of the box to Kovacic who rifled it low inside the left-hand post.
The Citizens were looking to quickly put the game beyond the Suffolk side and, after De Bruyne fired over the bar, were celebrating a third in the 42nd minute.
The Belgium international was instrumental in winning the ball back on half-way before countryman Doku played him behind the defence with a cut-back steered under Walton, who got a touch, by Foden.
As the half came to a close it was one where Town had actually given not played badly but just been punished with some slick play and finishing after running into Foden and De Bruyne in particular at the wrong time.
Encouragingly for their fans, the Blues had the first chance of the second period when Hutchinson played a one-two down the right with Johnson before seeing Ederson carry his opportunistic shot out for a corner.
But it was the breakaway from it, in the 49th minute, that saw the visitors get a four-goal lead. De Bruyne was again involved, finding Doku who drove in off the left wing, darting inside Godfrey and Morsy before seeing his cross-goal shot deflect in off the boot of O’Shea into the far corner.
The one thing Ipswich could not afford to do was gift-wrap anything else, but number five fell exactly into that category in the 57th minute. Jack Clarke’s pass across the middle for Godfrey was undercooked and saw Doku burst onto it before playing Haaland into the area to coolly slot it left-footed past the on-rushing Walton.
It could have been worse by the hour mark were it not for Walton winning the next battle against Haaland to push away his effort from a Doku cut-back while De Bruyne sent the loose ball onto the roof of the net.
There was some brief respite up the oher end when Hutchinson played a give-and-go with Johnson down the right before seeing Ederson carry his effort out for a corner, but the Tractor Boys were unable to make anything from the dead ball delivery.
Guardiola decided to get three of his main protagonists off in the 63rd minute with Foden, Haaland and De Bruyne replaced by Jack Grealish, Divin Mubama and McAtee.
In the same stoppage, McKenna brought Philogene on for his Blues debut for Jack Clarke while Tuanzebe make his injury return for fellow debtutant Godrey and Massimo Luongo replaced Jens Cajuste.
Within five minutes of coming on, McAtee wrapped up the scoring for his side with the sixth. It was made by a wonderful central chip over the defensive line to find the England Under-21 international’s run into the area before he nodded it calmly past Walton.
Hutchinson and Delap were replaced by Jack Taylor and Goerge Hirst with 17 minutes to go while Guardiola brought on England international Rico Lewis for Kovacic and Nico O’Reilly for Manuel Akanji.
From there on the game drifted towards its inevitably hurtful conclusion for the home fans, who saw their side continue to play out from the back without any further punishment.
The final whistle was wildly cheered by the away end who had not had as many joyful away days as they have become so used to in recent years, though this trip to Suffolk will now live long in their memory banks.
There was a touching show of solidarity with their team from those that had stayed to see the customary round of applause from the players and McKenna himself who made sure there was plenty of noise as they went round.
Next up is the little matter of a trip to league-leaders Liverpool. The Premier League can be a cruel mistress but there is certainly a sense that neither of these results will define where Ipswich Town end their first season back in the top flight in 22 years. Southampton, who follow at Portman Road on February 1, though is a very different matter.
Read more: McKenna says ‘honest conversations’ are needed following record-equalling home defeat
Read more: ‘We have to manage it better’ midfielder Cajuste on six-goal rout
Ipswich: Walton, Johnson, O’Shea, Godfrey (Tuanzebe 64’), Burgess, Davis, Hutchinson (Taylor 73’), Morsy, Cajuste (Luongo 64’), J Clarke (Philogene 64’), Delap (Hirst 73’).
Unused subs: Muric, Townsend, Burns, Broadhead.
Booked: None.
Man City: Ederson, Nunes, Akanji (O’Reilly 72’), Dias, Gvardiol, Kovacic (Lewis 72’), Gundogan, De Bruyne (McAtee 63’), Foden (Grealish 63’), Doku, Haaland (Mubama 63’).
Subs: Ortega, Bernardo, Savinho, Alleyne..
Booked: Nunes (79’).
Referee: Sam Barrott (West Riding)
VAR: Paul Tierney
Attendance: 29,841 (2,980 away)
SuffolkNews Man of the Match: Hard to pick anyone out of a 6-0 defeat from a home perspective but Omari Hutchinson, who managed a second start in four days on his return from injury, caused the City defence some problems and went closest to scoring.