That'll do for tonight
Thanks for your company! A big win for Leicester and a really woeful night for Leicester. Take care, and see you soon!
Barnes speaks:
“A tough period recently but good to get back to winning ways and personally to get back onto the scoresheet it’s great. We were gutted with how the cup game went, we knew both teams would come in wanting to win but it’s good to get a bit of payback for how the cup went and we’re delighted.
“The way [Reina] came out I saw a little gap at the side and took a touch, then you’ve got to it the target. It crept into the middle and going into half-time in front was great.
“This season’s my first full season from start to finish. First half of the season I was disappointed as I hadn’t scored any goals but since then the goals have been flying in and I’m delighted how it is going so far.
“It’s been a bit of a sticky period so for us [this] was very important. We need to kick on, we’re in a good position in the league.”
Ed Aarons has filed his match report already, what a pro – and our team on the desk have put it up already too, top pros all!
Full-time: Leicester 4-0 Aston Villa
Albrighton blasts over a great chance to make it five at the death after another lovely move but it doesn’t matter. That was easy, easy, easy for Leicester and I don’t even think they were at their best for three quarters of this game. They did enjoy themselves in the latter stages though, and Villa were just abject. The visitors looked like making this a good game for the first 10 minutes but after that barely managed a meaningful attack and defended horribly. Much more like this and they are going down.
90+1 min: There will be three added minutes to savour here.
89 min: Maddison is next to have a pop. And why not?
87 min: Tielemans fancies a goal from 25 yards, but not tonight. Well maybe tonight. There are still a few minutes left and Villa are in a state.
Goal! Leicester 4-0 Aston Villa (Barnes, 85)
The goal of the game, comfortably. A sweet move down the right ends with Albrighton pulling the ball back intelligently for Barnes, who sidefoots in crisply and clinically from 12 yards. That is Leicester at their best. This, as a disconsolate and rained-upon Smith reflects on the side, is Villa at their worst.
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83 min: Leicester quite rightly sense more goals and Maddison has an angled shot blocked for a corner, which he takes and sees flicked behind for another. That one is headed down by Evans but Ndidi can’t get it under control. And that’s it for Ndidi tonight; he’s off and Nampalys Mendy is on.
Goal! Leicester 3-0 Aston Villa (Vardy, 79)
Yep, he’s back and he’s far sharper than this sluggish Villa team. Evans makes a fine challenge on Samatta at one end and then Vardy counters at the other, his initial cutback is blocked by – I think – Guilbert – but no claret shirt reacts and Vardy is onto the loose ball in an instant. A snap shot inside the near post, and three guaranteed points!
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79 min: A similar run from Barnes, now, but an inferior delivery that he overhits wildly. Where are Villa, exactly? Guilbert sort-of answers that with a deflected shot straight at Schmeichel – remember him? – but ever since the 10th minute or so they have been pretty rotten.
77 min: Barnes surges down the left and fizzes a really dangerous cross over, but Vardy and Albrighton aren’t ready to convert.
76 min: Now a booking for Evans. It’s not been a good game, in my view, this. Very bitty. Tielemans now comes on for Praet.
74 min: Pereira has the physio on despite being the sinner after a hack on Grealish, so we have a lull. Leicester are going to win this without needing to be remotely near their best.
71 min: Praet is booked for fouling Nakamba. Villa, for whom this has become such a non-event, have a free-kick 35 yards out ... but Evans clears and their chances recede yet further into the distance.
69 min: I think I’d still like to hear how exactly that penalty against Mings was upheld by VAR. Not a clear and obvious mistake? It was clearly against his shoulder!
67 min: Villa bring on El Ghazi and Davis for Hourihane and Elmohamady. They need a very rapid uptick now.
65 min: Hourihane barges Maddison in the back and that could easily have been a second penalty there – the Villa man seemed a bit lucky.
Goal! Leicester 2-0 Aston Villa (Vardy 63 pen)
Never in doubt. His nine-game drought ends within moments of coming on, and that’ll be enough to seal this one I’m sure.
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Penalty given!
I still think that clearly came off his shoulder, very odd. But here’s Vardy with his first kick of the ball ...
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Penalty to Leicester ... possibly
Justin slides Barnes down the line and it glances off Mings’ ... eerrrrr ... shoulder, according to the replays. Michael Oliver gave the spot kick for handball immediately, but will VAR strike this off?
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60 min: Fortunately for Leicester they can replace Iheanacho with ... Jamie Vardy! He gets a rapturous welcome as he comes on for the final half-hour.
57 min: Ohhhh, the previously quite quiet Maddison plays Iheanacho right in front of goal but the striker makes a *really* poor touch and Villa are let off. That should have been 2-0, again.
55 min: Scruffy stuff on the whole, really, as it was earlier. From Leicester’s perspective, though, every win puts them a big step closer to the holy grail.
52 min: A spot of Villa pressure, now, and Hourihane shoots well over. Better from them though.
49 min: Mings seemed to overstretch when running back to try and salvage that situation, but appears to be alright. Then Evans heads a free-kick not too far off target.
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47 min: An early free-kick for Villa is delivered poorly by Hourihane. They need to make these situations count ... but then so does Iheanacho, who is played through on goal after poor defending from Guilbert and sees Reina sort-of redeem himself by saving with a foot!
Peeeep! The second half is underway
Can Villa turn it all around?
Some customary excellence from Jonathan Liew for your delectation:
Heard the sad news about Gordon Cowans @NickAmes82 - all the very best to him and his family. He was the kind of Number 10 who was distrusted in the English game (just ten caps), but he won a Big Cup and charmed us all. A "Luca Modric" on bad pitches against ruthless defenders.
— Gary Naylor (@garynaylor999) March 9, 2020
Indeed. Cowans has, for those who may not know, been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease; we send him, his family and his friends, all the strength and positive vibes possible.
Half-time: Leicester 1-0 Aston Villa
Hardly a classic here, but Villa have always looked willing to present Leicester with a goal and did so in quite spectacular fashion thanks to Reina’s rush of blood. Leicester probably deserve it because the away defence has been slipshod throughout the half. Villa began fairly well but faded badly and have it all to do.
45+1 min: Targett picks up a knock and takes treatment as we ready ourselves for the interval.
43 min: Hourihane fouls Pereira and is booked. Villa have looked close to a meltdown whenever pressed here but probably didn’t expect one to come from their 37-year-old keeper.
Goal! Leicester 1-0 Aston Villa (Barnes 40)
Reina is not so wily there! Oh my goodness, this is really bad. Albrighton plays a fairly regulation ball for Barnes to run onto down the left and ... hang on, what the heck is the keeper doing rushing out?! Only he will know what he’s thinking, because it’s an utterly bizarre decision and Barnes is always getting there first. He nips the ball past the veteran and, to be fair, still has a lot to do – finishing coolly into the empty net from 20 yards, past the covering defenders. I repeat: what was Reina up to? It wasn’t as if Barnes was clean through or anything remotely similar!
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37 min: Now an opening for Leicester from open play as Luiz loses the ball to Praet, who plays Barnes in down the left. Barnes tries to measure one across Reina but the keeper is too wily for that and saves low to his left.
36 min: Villa, since those early moments when Hourihane and Samatta lost their bearings, have been absent as an attacking force.
33 min: And another Leicester corner ... and a third big Leicester chance! It goes short again and some way back to Pereira, whose deep cross finds a totally unmarked Iheanacho. He *somehow* heads wide from in front of goal when it seemed easier to score – that’s the best opportunity yet and Villa look terrible from set-pieces here.
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31 min: Something happens, for the first time in a long time, and Leicester win a corner. If they swing it straight in then maybe they’ll have another free header. But instead they work it short and inside to Barnes, who’s actually in quite a good position but checks inside unwisely and the opening goes. Soon they win another flag kick, though, and Maddison puts it straight in. Again Villa defend uncertainly but they scramble it away.
28 min: Villa will of course be pleased for as long as it stays like this; a point would be handy enough given they also have another game in hand on those above.
25 min: If I keep saying it’s not dull, I’m going to convince myself. The game is yet to really flow and Leicester, for all their possession, are yet to create from open play.
22 min: Ok, it’s still not dull but we have definitely hit a scrappy patch ... until Guilbert stops Justin inside the area with an impeccably timed recovery tackle.
20 min: It’s not a dull game so far but quality has lacked. Leicester just exerting a little bit of control of late after that good Villa start.
17 min: Grealish catches Ndidi on the follow-through and ends up in pain, but up he gets after a nervy moment or two for Villa fans.
15 min: A strong run from Justin, which bodes well for him and Leicester, brings a corner. And it brings another free header for a Leicester centre-back! This time it’s Soyuncu running round the back; he really has to score but plants it over!
13 min: Mings is robbed by Iheanacho and then Reina screws one out of play. Villa’s worst enemy may well be themselves.
12 min: It’s been a good opening and, apart from that Leicester flurry just then, Villa have been the more impressive.
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10 min: Almost a self-inflicted piece of misery from Villa’s defence, as Engels tries to nod a long pass back to Reina with Iheanacho chasing but gets it all wrong and puts it only just wide of his own post. Then, from the corner, Evans has a free header on the run but allows Reina to parry! Both sides on the offensive so far here!
8 min: Play is pulled back after a Villa move fizzles out, because Ndidi has fouled Samatta to the left of centre. It’s a great position and a fine delivery too from Hourihane, who bends it to the far post and sees Samatta slide in but make a miscue of his own. That, too, was a decent opportunity.
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6 min: Chance for Villa! Targett overlaps to the byline after fine work from Grealish and lays one across for Hourihane to convert ... but he miskicks from 10 yards and what a let-off that is for the hosts.
4 min: Grealish goes on his first run into Leicester territory but Albrighton is back very diligently to nip that one in the bud. Suspect he’ll have a bit more of that to do.
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2 min: A slow start, with Iheanacho perhaps a bit unlucky to be pulled up for a free-kick when pressing strongly onto Mings.
Peeeeeeep! Off ... we ... go
Leicester, left to right, get us cracking on.
The teams are coming out ... game time will soon be upon us!
Wilfred Ndidi back so Leicester will almost certainly return to winning ways. So good at what he does.
— tariq panja (@tariqpanja) March 9, 2020
There is an awful lot of truth in this.
Brendan speaks!
“[Vardy] had trained the last few days but we want to make sure he’s fit not just for this game but for the rest of this season. It’s great to have him back, no doubt he’ll play a part.
“[James Justin, making his second Premier League start for Leicester at left-back] will be a player who is very important for us in the coming years and I’ve no qualms.
“We’ve been through a spell like most teams will do where you don’t pick up the results you want but we haven’t been negative, we’re focused and will do everything we can to get the three points.”
So does Dean (Smith)!
“We can’t control other results, what it does is make our players realise it’s not about what other teams do. We’ve got two games in hand on the teams around us, so [need to] win them and that’s what we have to do.”
“The Foxes against the Villains at the King Power Stadium sounds like a teaser for a noir novel about palace intrigue. But let’s face it, tonight’s game will probably be low on genuine drama. My money is on Leicester winning 3-1 and Brendan getting back into the Champions League next year,” predicts Justin Kavanagh.
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200 - Kasper Schmeichel is only the fourth Danish player to hit the 200-game mark in the Premier League, after Thomas Sørensen (364), his father Peter Schmeichel (310) and Christian Eriksen (226). Great. pic.twitter.com/VvUG2Kd0xi
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 9, 2020
Tillykke!
For your ears only – it’s the brand new Football Weekly!
No Ben Chilwell for Leicester, you’ll note, due to a hamstring injury. Jamie Vardy missed the defeat at Norwich but is, as trailed, among the subs. Villa look strong but this one is too soon for their talismanic and much-missed midfielder, John McGinn.
Teams – Vardy back, but on the bench
Leicester: Schmeichel, Ricardo Pereira, Evans, Soyuncu, Justin, Ndidi, Albrighton, Praet, Maddison, Barnes, Iheanacho. Subs: Morgan, Tielemans, Vardy, Ward, Perez, Mendy, Fuchs.
Aston Villa: Reina, Guilbert, Engels, Mings, Targett, Douglas Luiz, Nakamba, Hourihane, Elmohamady, Samatta, Grealish. Subs: Taylor, Drinkwater, Konsa, Trezeguet, El Ghazi, Nyland, Davis.
Referee: Michael Oliver
Hello
Leicester couldn’t ... could they? That’s to say – they couldn’t mess this up, could they? Champions League qualification has seemed pretty much in the bag since Christmas but Brendan Rodgers’ men have been distinctly wobbly of late and, if we stick for now to the idea that it’ll take a top-four place to get there, are beginning to look vulnerable. Manchester United are among those lurking and what they need, after three straight league games without a goal, is a straightforward, old-fashioned home victory to clear their heads.
So how about it? Villa won’t be too enamoured with that thought and already have something of an Indian sign over today’s hosts, having dumped them out of the League Cup semis. They are on a stinky run of their own, with three straight top-flight defeats, and badly need points on the board now if they are to claw themselves away from the drop zone. They are only two off safety as things stand though, so if they win this then they will leap to 16th. Otherwise, it’s another week right in the mire.
Which is it to be? Stay with us for the next few hours and find out. Emails, tweets, jokes, poems, pithy observations, shopping lists – anything really – all appreciated as we go.
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