Three days on from their 2-0 defeat to Saints at the Academy Stadium on Saturday, Patrick Vieira’s side ran out emphatic 4-0 winners in their penultimate Barclays u21 Premier League game of the season.
Aaron Nemane gave City the lead with his first goal at under-21 level after 37 minutes and Olivier Ntcham doubled the advantage with a brilliant long-range strike a minute before the break.
The first period had a pleasing ebb and flow to it with chances at both ends but the away side undoubtedly deserved their two-goal lead as they had seemed to improve and dominate increasingly as the half wore on.
City were even better after the break and found themselves three to the good five minutes into the half when Brandon Barker scored a fine individual goal before in-form Kelechi Iheanacho made it 4-0 on the hour to complete the rout.
It was a devastating display of attacking football from the away side in the second period and they would have won by even more goals had it not been for the superb Cody Cropper in the Southampton goal.
Following the International Premier League Cup final win over FC Porto, the Blues’ euphoria had just been checked by defeats to Manchester United and Southampton.
Those losses robbed the EDS of the opportunity to win the league but this performance were more in keeping with what we’ve seen from Vieira’s side over the course of the 14/15 campaign and sets up a mouthwatering U21 derby on Saturday.
There were wholesale changes to the line-up from the one which started the previous game, with only Jack Byrne, Iheanacho and Ntcham keeping their places in the side.
There had been rumours Jay Rodriguez would make his return for the hosts after more than a year out of action as a result of the injury he sustained at the Etihad Stadium last season, however that proved to be little more than idle speculation.
Southampton boss Martin Hunter made just three changes to his side for their final game of the u21 season as the hosts looked to secure a top four finish.
On Saturday, City had dominated possession but found themselves up against a stingy Saints backline with a couple of big, powerful, pacey strikers successfully inflicting damage on the break.
That pattern of play was repeated at Southampton’s first-team stadium but there was no echo of their third minute goal withnessed in Manchester as George Evans and Angelino made a couple of well-timed last-ditch challenges to prevent the early concession.
Vieira’s side started to make inroads as the half wore on, with Barker, Byrne and Iheanacho scheming in the final third, aided by lung-busting overlapping runs from James Horsfield and Angelino.
Ntcham was closest to making good on this increased City pressure but his 22nd minute volley under pressure was sliced a yard past Cody Cropper’s far post.
This warning shot was heeded and the hosts had a couple of excellent chances to take the lead in the 24th minute when Sam Gallagher’s close-range stab for goal was well-read by Angus Gunn, before Lloyd Isgrove hit the woodwork with a half-volley from the edge of the area.
At the other end, Cropper was called into action by Ntcham once again when the Parisian brought the very best out of the Saints stopper with a turn and shot from 25 yards which stung the American’s palms.
Barker and Nemane swapped wings on the half hour to try and unsettle the home backline and it paid dividends seven minutes later when Iheanacho got to the byline and squared for Nemane who tapped in the opening goal at the back post.
Just when it looked as though there would be just one goal between the teams at the interval, Ntcham did what he had been threatening to do all half long.
It was an almost identical effort to the one which had brought the best out of Cropper earlier in the game but this time the Parisian left the goalkeeper pawing at thin air as his strike from the edge of the D arrowed into the bottom corner.
It got worse for Southampton five minutes after the break when they conceded another, though in truth there was little they could have done against a City outfit clearly in the mood to express themselves.
Barker showed fleet feet and a neat turn of pace to slalom through a minefield of challenges before exchanging passes with Iheanacho, opening up his body and slotting past the onrushing goalkeeper.
It was a phenomenal goal which demonstrated what this EDS side can do when at their devastating, incisive best.
Ten minutes later, Barker returned the compliment for Iheanacho, drilling in a low cross which the Nigerian tapped in from close range.
Barker and Iheanacho were running riot and the pair could have been responsible for even more goals as they found each other time and again in the remaining minutes but City would have to be content with their four-goal winning margin.
The result moves City up a place to eighth in the table, just a point behind Southampton with champions Manchester United up next in their final u21 Premier League assignment at City Football Academy on Saturday.
