Man City had the lowest number of shots of a Pep Guardiola team EVER in the top flight in their 1-0 loss to Aston Villa and didn’t shoot after the 11th minute… as statistics reveal just how badly the champions were dominated

• The statistics behind Man City’s loss at Aston Villa are among his worst ever 
• Only at Barcelona B has a Pep Guardiola side managed fewer shots in the league  
• CHRIS SUTTON: I would have been angry like Erling Haaland, but why did it need six or seven City players going at the referee? It’s All Kicking Off 

Manchester City had the lowest number of shots ever out of a top-tier Pep Guardiola side ever in their 1-0 loss at Aston Villa. 

City’s two shots is the most paltry of any Guardiola side, while the 22 efforts they faced is the most one of his teams has faced. 

Leon Bailey’s deflected strike was enough to separate the sides as Villa leapfrogged City on Wednesday night with an extraordinary performance. 

The statistics behind City’s defeat, which saw them slip to fourth in the Premier League, lay bare just how well Unai Emery has drilled his Midlands project. 

Guardiola has overseen City, Barcelona, and Bayern Munich, but only at Barcelona B has one of his teams attempted fewer attempts on goal. 

Man City managed just two shots against Aston Villa – the lowest number by a Pep Guardiola team ever in top-tier football 

Villa thwarted City and did not allow them a single shot after 11 minutes, also having the most shots against a Guardiola team in a top-flight fixture (22)

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The Premier League champions didn’t have a shot after the 11-minute mark while Villa swarmed their penalty area. 

But the grim reading doesn’t stop there. 

Guardiola has led City through 281 league games but against Villa they recorded their 23rd-lowest possession figure (53.9 per cent), according to Stats Perform. 

They also produced their 25th-lowest number of successful passes – 454. 

That’s a far cry from their record-breaking performances in the past – against Swansea in 2018, they completed a staggering 942 passes. 

All of this is a huge compliment to Aston Villa, who have now won 14 Premier League home games on the bounce. 

Villa sit third in the league and are also third in the table for the calendar year, picking up eight points fewer than City in 2023 and two fewer than Arsenal.

Bailey has perhaps gone under the radar behidn Ollie Watkins and Moussa Diaby but now has eight goals to his name in all competitions.

That’s already his best return by since signing from Bayer Leverkusen for £30million in July 2021. 

Guardiola has managed top-flight clubs for fourteen-and-a-half seasons but has never seen one of his teams take just two shots 

Leon Bailey scored the only goal as Aston Villa dominated the Premier League champions

It was a frustrating night for Erling Haaland, whose two games without a goal is almost a  drought by his exceptional standards

IT’S ALL KICKING OFF! 

It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.

It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.

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