Premier League Top Five, Round Ten: Leicester dominate after Southampton mauling
NINE nil. Leicester's extraordinary performance against Southampton was perfect for them in every way, and even allowed summer signing Perez to get off the mark for his new club. Perez struck three excellent goals against the hapless Saints, the first a run and shot from the edge of the area, before following up with a back post strike lashed into the roof of the net. He completed his treble with a composed control and finish in the second half as Leicester just didn't let up.
Pulisic has taken time to integrate himself at Chelsea but his execution of the perfect hat-trick at Burnley will go some way to justifying his large fee. His first, a pacy dribble into the area followed by a drilled shot into the corner, then the same again on his right foot, a nick off the defender guiding his effort home. In the second half he flicked home a near post header and now it feels for the American that his Chelsea career has begun in earnest.
It's testament to the modern game that one of Leicester's most effective attacking weapons was full-back Ben Chilwell, who basically camped himself in the Southampton half during their 9-0 thrashing. Chilwell showed a striker's instinct to slot home from close range for the opening goal, then his pinpoint deliveries for both Perez and Jamie Vardy gave the forwards the simple task of converting. An astonishing 130 touches - more than any other player in the round - shows how everything went through him on Leicester's left.
Vardy just isn't the type of player to show a struggling opposition any mercy whatsoever and, sure enough, Southampton were put to the sword in devastating fashion. The first of his hat-trick was a neat control and finish inside the area, before he pulled away from his marker to nod in his second. An injury time penalty - one that he himself won - completed the treble and left him in a fight with team-mate Perez over who got to take home the match ball.
City had to be patient to eventually overcome Aston Villa on Saturday and Gundogan typified their ability to build up and wait for the right moment. The German completed 95 of his 102 passes in the contest, including a round-high 41 into the final third and his superb controlling performance was capped up by slotting home the killer third goal in the second half.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS
Despite missing a penalty Marcus Rashford (8.9) produced arguably his best display of the season as Man Utd won at Norwich, while Tim Krul (8.5), who saved pens from both Rashford and Anthony Martial, can count himself unfortunate to be on the losing side.
ROUND TO FORGET
Maya Yoshida (3.8) and most of his Southampton team-mates will want to obliterate the memory of their battering from Leicester.