LONDON, Aug 8: Kelechi Iheanacho’s late penalty gave Leicester a 1-0 victory over Manchester City in the Community Shield on Saturday, stealing the spotlight from new fan favourite Jack Grealish.
Iheanacho’s left-footed rocket from the spot beat goalkeeper Zack Steffen in the 88th minute in the English season-opener, and Leicester celebrated once again at Wembley Stadium, where they won the FA Cup final in May.
Grealish made his debut for City just two days after the Premier League champion broke the British transfer fee record by paying 100 million pounds ($139 million) to sign him from Aston Villa.
The midfielder came on in the 65th minute and looked for whistle when he went down on the edge of the Leicester box about 10 minutes later.
He didn’t get it, but Iheanacho did after being taken down by defender Nathan Ake. The Nigeria international made no mistake from the spot against his former team.
City manager Pep Guardiola gave starts to teenagers Sam Edozie and Cole Palmer while established stars, including like Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden, remain out either injured or just returning from summer break.
“I would have loved to win the game,” Guardiola said.
“Congratulations to Leicester for the victory, but the performance was really good. At this stage of the season, and to play the young guys, was excellent.
Grealish, he added, was “really good.”
As the traditional season curtain-raiser, the Community Shield is a cross between a competitive match and a preseason friendly. It’s contested by the champions of the league and the FA Cup.”
Leicester hosts Wolverhampton next Saturday, and City visits Tottenham next Sunday. (AP)
