Festive cheer turned to disappointment after Manchester City eased their way to a 3-1 victory at Elland Road last night. Although it was nothing more than what was expected, it doesn't make it any easier, especially when you're hovering just two points above the drop zone

Marsch's men looked well-disciplined for the most part, restricting the Champions of England to half-chances; at least until first half injury time. With only seconds to go before the break, Rodri pounced on a rebound after Meslier had denied Mahrez with a smart diving save to his right. All Leeds hard work had been undone at the worst possible time.

City doubled their tally shortly after the break. Koch remained rooted to the spot after Cooper's under-hit pass allowed Grealish time to nip in, and make a beeline for the Leeds penalty area. As Meslier advanced to narrow down the angle, the former Villa ace squared the ball to Haaland for the easiest of tap-ins.

Citeh added a third on the hour mark. Grealish linked up well with Haaland, allowing the Norwegian International the space and time he needed to stab the ball home from close range. Leeds never gave up, and finally got on the scoresheet themselves on 73 minutes. Greenwood's sublime corner was met by the head of Struijk, and suddenly Leeds were back in the game. Gelhardt was inches away from adding a second, minutes later but it was not to be. Leeds 1 City 3.

	Line Up		Nat	Match Events
		Meslier, Illan Goalkeeper
		Kristensen, Rasmus Defender
		Koch, Robin Defender
		Cooper, Liam Defender
		Struijk, Pascal Defender
		Greenwood, Sam Midfielder
		Roca, Marc Midfielder
		Forshaw, Adam Midfielder
		Gnonto, Wilfried Midfielder
		Aaronson, Brenden Midfielder
		Moreno, Rodrigo Forward
	Subs		Nat	Match Events
		Klich, Mateusz Midfielder
		Ayling, Luke Defender
		Gelhardt, Joe Forward
		Llorente, Diego Defender
		Gyabi, Darko Midfielder
		Robles, Joel Goalkeeper		Unused Sub
		Firpo, Junior Defender		Unused Sub
		Summerville, Crysencio Midfielder		Unused Sub
		Harrison, Jack Midfielder		Unused Sub

	References
	LEEDSTATS: Leeds United Season 2022/2023
	Sheridan Dictates: Season Statistics 2022-23
	Leeds United Programme Guide: Season 2022/23