Birmingham, United Kingdom

Manchester City hit a new low on Saturday (Dec 21) after they lost to Aston Villa in the Premier League’s early kickoff. Playing at Villa Park, Pep Guardiola’s side was condemned to their third consecutive defeat, meaning they have won only one of their last 12 matches in all competitions. On the other hand, Villa move above Man City with the win as Unai Emery’s side look to challenge for the top four and a return to the Champions League.

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Manchester City lose at Villa

Playing against Emery’s side, City came into the match on the back of a narrow defeat to Manchester United at the Etihad. However, things did not go well with Pep’s side as in-form Jhon Duran scored in the 16th minute from open play. Villa were the better side by then and pressed on every possible counterattack.

Duran and Lucas Digne both had more open opportunities as they looked to open the opposition's defense. Things could have gone from bad to worse in the 33rd minute for City, but last-ditch defending from City’s defense saw them keep the score at 1-0.

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After the break, Morgan Rodgers was the bright star as the visitors had to make a forced change in defense with Kyle Walker coming in place of injured John Stones. Rodgers scored the second Villa goal in the 65th minute while Phil Foden’s goal in the 93rd minute was just a consolation.

"Congratulations Aston Villa and keep going. In the mid-block, they are so strong. 

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"We have good moments, we had chances, more chances than in the (Manchester) United game, but in the second half we dropped and our pressing was not good enough... We found a goal in the end, but too late."