Back into the top four then for Leicester City, and deservedly so after another vibrant attacking performance on the road. The plaudits will go to Jamie Vardy, who scored for the fifth match in succession and took his personal haul to seven for the season, but the pacy England striker was by no means the only individual to impress as – having dominated for an hour – Claudio Ranieri’s side held off a late Norwich City fightback to take all three points.
Ranieri, who continues to give the impression of a man enjoying himself hugely, was full of praise for his players for the manner in which they put last week’s first defeat of the season, by Arsenal, behind them.
“We were very, very determined to try and win the match, and we created a lot of chances, seven or eight, I think,” said the Italian. “We scored two, and had one that wasn’t good [disallowed], they scored one and, at the end, it was a big battle, a good English period – I love this kind of period. Every match in England, never it’s finished, you have to fight until the 96th minute.”
On the back of four games unbeaten, it was no surprise that Norwich manager Alex Neil’s only change was to recall on-loan winger Matt Jarvis, ineligible to play against parent club West Ham United last week.
Slightly more surprising, at least to those who did not watch the entire game against Arsenal last week, was Ranieri leaving the Algeria international Riyad Mahrez on the bench.
“I knew very well how Norwich play, push a lot up the flanks, and I said OK, we start with a solid team,” was the explanation, and judging by a first half in which his goalkeeper, Kasper Schmeichel, was not required to make a save, the tinkering was spot on.
It was not long before Leicester’s pressing brought results, Marc Albrighton dispossessing Alex Tettey before crossing low. Shinji Okazaki, leaning back, headed over, but in a characteristically swift counterattack Vardy comprehensively beat Russell Martin before his attempt to slide the ball inside John Ruddy’s near post from a narrow angle was turned behind.
Leicester should have taken the lead when Vardy flicked on a long Christian Fuchs throw soon afterwards, but Marc Albrighton miskicked and Danny Drinkwater’s shot was well saved by Ruddy. Minutes later, however, the visitors did get the goal their control of the game deserved, albeit in controversial circumstances. Vardy looked to have miscontrolled before going down in the penalty area under pressure from Sébastien Bassong, but the referee, Mark Clattenburg, decided the defender had clipped his heels first, and Vardy sent Ruddy the wrong way from the spot.
Leicester’s only concern at half-time was not being further ahead, but they put that right immediately after the break. Jonny Howson, not for the first time, lost the ball in the Leicester half, N’Golo Kanté slipped Jeff Schlupp clear into the penalty area on the Norwich left, and the Ghana international had all the time he needed to roll a shot inside Ruddy’s far post.
Neil made changes, as he had to, and the introduction of Dieumerci Mbokani alongside Jerome up front quickly paid off. The strongly built DR Congo striker, on season-long loan from Dynamo Kiev, first headed against the bar and then met Howson’s cross with a clever flick to register his first goal for the Canaries.
Leo Ulloa, on for the ineffective Okazaki, saw a header ruled out for a shove, but Norwich, inspired by the dynamism of Mbokani, also went close in a frantic finale, leaving Neil frustrated with their first half showing.
“Everything that happened today we spoke about and worked on in training,” said the Scot. “The players let themselves down in that first 45 minutes. Our use of the ball was poor, too predictable. I’d set us up to take advantage of them being a counter-attacking team, but we didn’t have their levels, and they punished us.”
