Leicester’s fleet of English youngsters attracted a lot of attention, especially after Gareth Southgate summoned James Maddison and Ben Chilwell, but the acclaim here belonged mostly to a former England striker who still confounds defences.
Jamie Vardy scored two goals and created one for Youri Tielemans, making Callum Wilson’s smart effort for the visitors incidental.
Brendan Rodgers can go into the international break encouraged by the performance of his team, who are unbeaten after their first four games, and grateful that Vardy has retired from national service. “He was unplayable today,” said Rodgers of Leicester’s trusty marksman. “To have that type of talisman up front is amazing.”
Bournemouth are anything but coy travellers and their outgoing nature here made them dangerous but also highly vulnerable. They carried a threat from the start but left themselves open to counterattacks – an approach that, while making for entertaining fare, seems reckless when Vardy is around.
When a venture forward by the visitors petered out in the 12th minute, Chilwell was quick to exploit the risk. He immediately sent a perfectly judged long pass over the top of the two Bournemouth players who had stayed back, with neither Chris Mepham or Steve Cook having the speed or anticipation to beat Vardy to the ball. The striker let it drop in front of him and then, spotting Aaron Ramsdale way off his line, struck it first time over him and into the net from 25 yards.
“We had planned for Vardy,” said Eddie Howe, dismayed. “It was one ball over the top – that’s what he does. But we didn’t cope well enough with it.”
Bournemouth hit back within three minutes. Callum Wilson made a clever run to give Caglar Soyuncu the slip and collect a through-ball from Ryan Fraser before clipping the ball past Kasper Schmeichel with impressive finesse.
After that Leicester gained more control in midfield as Bournemouth’s Philip Billing and Jefferson Lerma shrivelled up a little after earning yellow cards.
Maddison was particularly inventive. In addition to being on the end of a cross by Marc Albrighton – which he headed just wide from 10 yards – he prompted his teammates with bold, precise passes. One of them led to Leicester’s second goal.
He picked out Vardy wide on the left. The striker’s cross was blocked by Cook but when the ball bounced back to him, Vardy darted into the box and played a low pass across the face of goal. Tielemans bundled it in from close range via a post.
The Belgian made a mark in more contentious fashion in the 55th minute when the ball broke to him near halfway and he threw his foot over it, ending up stamping on Callum Wilson’s ankle. It looked like a clumsy attempt to shield the ball but the result was a striker in real pain. A VAR review determined there was insufficient evidence to support a red card.
“I’d like to watch it and see why,” said Callum Wilson. “He went straight over the top and on my shin. He almost broke my ankle.”
Rodgers offered an explanation. “He is just trying to get his body between Wilson and the ball. If you review it and slow it down it looks a really bad tackle but it’s one of those things which accidentally happens in the game.”
Callum Wilson would have welcomed a similarly lenient judgment in the 68th minute when he went down in the box after a challenge by Soyuncu and was booked after sarcastically applauding the referee’s decision to award a free-kick to the defender.
Soon Leicester struck again. The goal originated in a slick move involving Tielemans and Maddison; Bournemouth managed to interrupt it but did not clear the danger fast enough, allowing Maddison to nick the ball back off Mepham in the box. Tielemans helped it on to Vardy, who guided it into the corner of the goal from seven yards.
