Town fell to their joint-heaviest home defeat as they were thrashed 6-0 by Manchester City at Portman Road. The Blues played well for the first half hour but once Phil Foden, on 27, Mateo Kovacic, three minutes later, and then Foden again in the 42nd minute had given the visitors a three-goal half-time lead, it was one-way traffic in the second period with Jeremy Doku, 49, Erling Haaland, 57, and James McAtee, 69, completing the scoring to inflict Town’s biggest home loss since Liverpool won by the same scoreline in February 2002.
The Blues made five changes from the team which lost 2-0 to Brighton on Thursday with Ben Godfrey handed his league debut and skipper Sam Morsy, Cameron Burgess, Ben Johnson and Jack Clarke returning to the team.
Godfrey took over from Luke Woolfenden, who was left out of the 20-man party, but lined up to the right of Dara O’Shea, who was in the centre alongside Burgess, who came in for Jacob Greaves, who was also absent from the squad.
Johnson was wide on the right with Wes Burns on the bench and Leif Davis on the left with Christian Walton continuing in goal.
Morsy replaced Kalvin Phillips, who was ineligible against his parent club, alongside Jens Cajuste in midfield.
Clarke came in for Nathan Broadhead, who was among the subs, alongside Omari Hutchinson behind number nine Liam Delap.
Jaden Philogene was on the bench having signed from Aston Villa in midweek, as was Axel Tuanzebe after returning from his hamstring injury.
City made four changes from the 2-2 draw with Brentford in midweek with Ederson, Ruben Dias, Ilkay Gundogan and Jeremy Doku coming in for Stefan Ortega, Nathan Ake, who has a knock, Bernardo Silva and Savinho.
Town began the game well and won a corner in the third minute, Matheus Nunes nodding beyond his keeper and out of play. From the flag-kick, Burgess rose highest but his header looped for another corner off Dias.
City began to see most of the ball but in the eighth minute Johnson won the ball not far outside the Town area, before Clarke burst away into the City half and fed Delap to his right. The former City frontman cut inside Dias and hit a shot which was blocked. The Blues picked up the ball again but were unable to get in another effort.
The visitors should have gone in front on the quarter hour from the game’s first serious chance. Kovacic threaded a superb ball through for Erling Haaland to chase into the box behind O’Shea but the Norwegian, who signed a new 10-year contract this week, shot too close to Walton, who saved with his left hand.
The resultant corner came to nothing but the Blues were subsequently unable to play their way out from the back and an effort from Foden from the right of the area was blocked before Kovacic shot deep into the North Stand from the edge of box.
On 20, Foden unleashed a strike from 20 yards but it hit Gundogan and deflected through to Walton.
Three minutes later, Delap battled with Kovacic, won the ball, took it on and was fouled just outside the box to the left.
Clarke took the free-kick and laid it off to the unmarked Hutchinson on the edge of the area from where the former Chelsea man struck a powerful shot which flicked over off Haaland’s head when on its way into the roof of the net.
From the corner, Town threatened again, O’Shea rising high heading towards goal but Ederson claimed two-handed under his bar.
However, the visitors took the lead in the 27th minute. Doku fed in Kevin De Bruyne on the left of the box and the Belgian chipped a cross to Foden on the edge of the six-yard box at the near post. The England international deftly took it down before hitting a quick shot on the half-turn which gave Walton no chance.
The Town fans tried to up the noise despite their side having gone behind and on 29 Delap brought the ball forward before hitting an ambitious shot from distance which Ederson saved down to his right.
A minute later, it was 2-0. Foden squared the ball to Kovacic on the edge of the area to his right and the Croatian international fired a low shot into the corner of the net.
Performance-wise, the Blues had had a decent first half hour, playing as well as they might have hoped against such illustrious opposition, but still found themselves two goals down.
Davis whipped a cross over from the left into Ederson’s arms, then De Bruyne shot over from the edge after more good work from Foden.
City made it 3-0 and effectively tied up the points in the 42nd minute. Doku threaded in De Bruyne behind Godfrey on the left and, as Burgess came out to cover, cut back to Foden on the edge of the six-yard box, from where he turned the ball under Walton and into the net for his second goal of the game, fifth in his last three Premier League games and his sixth in his last six in the top flight.
Neither side threatened in the remaining scheduled time and one additional minute. The scoreline was harsh on the Blues’ display overall, certainly up to the first City goal, with Town giving as good as they got against the Premier League champions and creating a couple of decent chances.
However, the visitors’ quality eventually showed with the Blues unable to keep Foden and De Bruyne in check with the first goal cleverly converted by the England man, who then teed-up Kovacic for the second, before De Bruyne again made the most of be able to break into the area unchecked to create the third.
Town, facing an impossible task to get back in the game, were first to threaten after the break, Delap feeding Johnson on the right of the area and the West Ham man hitting a low shot across Ederson that the keeper initially couldn’t hold but claimed off a defender’s shins.
But within a minute, the visitors scored their fourth. De Bruyne sent Doku way on the left, the Belgian international taking the ball into the area and cutting between Godfrey and Morsy before hitting a shot across Walton which caught O’Shea and nestled in the corner of the net.
And on 57, it was 5-0. Clarke made a wayward pass not far inside the Town half, gifting possession to Doku, who gratefully accepted it, took it forward and cut inside to the right to Haaland, who slipped it past Walton.
City continued to look for goals and two minutes after the fifth goal Haaland and Doku exchanged passes on the left of the box, but the Norwegian’s shot was blocked. De Bruyne’s follow-up deflected onto the roof of the net.
Town hadn’t been in it as an attacking force since the fourth goal, but on 62 Hutchinson played a one-two with Johnson on the right and hit a cross-shot which Ederson claimed but took out for a corner, which came to nothing.
A minute later, City swapped Haaland, De Bruyne and the outstanding Foden for Divin Mubama, Jack Grealish and James McAtee, then Town switched Clarke, Cajuste and Godfrey for debutant Philogene, wearing Jaden on the back of his shirt, Massimo Luongo and Tuanzebe, whose return was warmly cheered by the home support.
Five minutes after coming on, McAtee made it six. Kovacic was given time and space to chip a ball over the Town backline and the England U21 international got in behind and nodded a looping header over Walton from 10 yards out at the back post.
Town made two more changes in the 73rd minute, Delap and Hutchinson making way for George Hirst and Jack Taylor.
Nunez was booked for a foul on Davis on the left in the 79th minute, the game’s first yellow card, but the free-kick came to nothing.
City played out the remaining minutes in complete control of the game but with the Blues able to prevent any further goals.
After the whistle, the Town players and staff went over to the North Stand and were warmly cheered and applauded by their fans, despite the heaviest defeat of the McKenna era.
A chastening afternoon for the Blues, who can look back on a first half hour in which they matched the visitors and created a couple of openings.
However, City’s quality carved out their clearer cut chances, which were taken to take the game well away from the home side. In the second half, once the fourth goal went in, it was all City with Town’s aim to do nothing more than keep the scoreline down.
The worst Blues home defeat since the 6-0 at home to Liverpool in February 2002 and their heaviest loss full stop since losing by the same scoreline to Blackpool in August 2012. It is also the heaviest home defeat in the top flight this season and City’s biggest ever away win in the Premier League.
The thrashing by the Reds in 2002 precipitated a collapse which ended in relegation from the Premier League, Town having been 12th at the time.
A similar disintegration from McKenna’s men seems unlikely but the result and the narrative of the game illustrates the gulf between the teams towards the top of the division and those at the bottom.
However, shipping so many goals is a big blow to their goal difference, the Blues now sitting six worse off than Wolves above them in the final safe spot with the teams still equal on points.
Following their poor run, City needed a win and perhaps a big one given the spotlight they and manager Pep Guardiola have been under.
It doesn’t get any easier for Town with a trip to leaders Liverpool, where they were beaten 5-0 on their last Premier League visit in May 2002, up next on Sunday.
Town: Walton, Johnson, Godfrey (Tuanzebe 64), O'Shea, Burgess, Morsy, Cajuste (Luongo 64), Davis, Hutchinson (Taylor 73), Clarke (Philogene 64), Delap (Hirst 73). Unused: Muric, Townsend, Burns, Broadhead.
Manchester City: Ederson, Nunes, Akanji, Dias, Gvardiol, Kovacic, Gundogan, De Bruyne (Grealish 64), Foden (McAtee 64), Doku, Haaland (Mubama 64). Unused: Moreno, Bernardo, Savinho, Alleyne, O'Reilly, Lewis. Referee: Sam Barrott (West Riding). VAR: Paul Tierney. Att: 29,841 (City: 2,980).