I’ll leave you with Dave Hytner’s report from the King Power Stadium. Thanks for your company and emails, bye!
Burnley 0-0 West Ham
Next up
Full time: Leicester 4-0 Newcastle
A perfect afternoon for Leicester, who jump to eighth in the table after thrashing Newcastle. That’s their highest position this season, and West Ham’s draw at Burnley means they are only six points off fourth place. Youri Tielemans scored twice but the star was James Maddison, who made the first three goals and scored the fourth. When he plays like that, with such creativity and charisma, he is irresistible. (And yes, he probably did dive for the penalty in the first half.)
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90+1 min There will be three minutes of added time.
90 min Saint-Maximin, who has given everything today, is booked for a lunge at Daka.
88 min The brilliant James Maddison walks off to a standing ovation and a big hug from Brendan Rodgers. He is replaced by the 20-year-old debutant Kasey McAtter.
87 min Maddison and Tielemans will get the headlines, and quite right too, but Patson Daka has had another fine game. He scored one, made one and played a part in Tielemans’ second as well.
Schmeichel’s long goalkick was only partially cleared, with Leicester winning possession 40 yards from goal. Maddison picked up the loose ball, played a slick wall pass with Daka and slammed the ball past Dubravka with his left foot.
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GOAL! Leicester 4-0 Newcastle (Maddison 85)
If ever a man deserved a goal.
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85 min Saint-Maximin beats four players before Daka makes an important tackle in the area. Newcastle bring on Matt Ritchie for Jonjo Shelvey.
83 min The moment Tielemans scored he turned to acknowledge Maddison, and then pointed to the back of Maddison’s shirt while embracing him in front of the Leicester fans. It’s been a difficult year for Maddison but he’s ending it in style.
Thomas started it by winning the ball near the halfway line. He pushed it down the left to Daka, who charged into the area and hit a fast cross towards Maddison. He controlled a difficult ball immaculately, opening his body in the process, and slipped it outside to Tielemans. The rest was inevitable: Tielemans took a touch and lifted the ball confidently over Dubravka. That’s just a lovely goal.
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GOAL! Leicester 3-0 Newcastle (Tielemans 81)
Another gorgeous team goal from Leicester!
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81 min A win was the most important thing for Leicester today, but after recent events Brendan Rodgers would love a clean sheet as well.
78 min: Schmeichel clears off the line! Timothy Castagne almost scored an absurd own goal. He overhit a backpass from around 35 yards that went past Schmeichel, who scampered back and stretched to clear the ball with the outside of his right foot.
78 min The corner is played short, crossed and headed away by Joelinton.
77 min Dewsbury-Hall wins a corner for Leicester, who look very comfortable despite Newcastle’s greater possession.
74 min Dubravka charges out of his goal to beat Daka to Albrighton’s through ball.
72 min In the other game it’s still Burnley 0-0 West Ham. Who knew.
71 min A Leicester change: Marc Albrighton replaces Harvey Barnes, who had a quiet game apart from his assist for the second goal.
70 min Manquillo is booked for a foul on Harvey Barmes.
69 min Murphy’s fast low cross is kicked away by Schmeichel at the near post. Shelvey meets the clearance with a sweet volley from 25 yards that hits Ndidi and goes behind for a corner.
68 min This is a decent spell for Newcastle, probably their best of the match.
Wonderful team goal from #LCFC 🔥
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 12, 2021
Sublime vision from Maddison, and Barnes unselfishly sets up Daka to double Leicester's lead!
What a celebration too! 👏 pic.twitter.com/VY6FgloPyH
65 min Saint-Maximin shoots straight at Schmeichel from distance. It was well struck but too close to the keeper. Saint-Maximin is the only Newcastle attacker who has looked remotely threatening.
64 min Soyuncu is booked for an, a-hem, overzealous tackle on Wilson.
62 min A double change for Newcastle: Ryan Fraser and Jacob Murphy replace Jamal Lewis and Miguel Almiron.
62 min Shelvey flattens Maddison with a stray forearm. VAR have a look but decide not to take it any further.
60 min It’s well worth looking up that Daka goal. Maddison’s flick, which took five players out of the game, was delightful. In fact it was vaguely reminiscent of Eric Cantona’s famous pass to Denis Irwin in the first Premier League season.
59 min At the other end, Willock whistles just over from the edge of the D. Schmeichel had it covered and pulled his hand away when he realised it clearing the bar.
That was a beautifully worked goal, a reminder the Leicester we have all enjoyed so much in the last few years. Maddison stripped the Newcastle defence naked with a deliciously imaginative flick that put Barnes through on goal. He drew Dubravka and then squared the ball to give Daka an open goal.
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GOAL! Leicester 2-0 Newcastle (Daka 57)
Patson Daka makes it two!
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53 min Newcastle’s first shot on target: it was Joelinton, from the edge of the area, with the left peg, and Schmeichel saved comfortably.
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52 min Nothing much happening at the start of the second half. Both teams have really struggled to get going in attack.
48 min Barnes shoots wide from 20 yards.
47 min Since you asked, it was Burnley 0-0 West Ham at half-time.
46 min Peep peep! Newcastle begin the second half.
We’ve just seen multiple replays of the penalty decision. It’s really tricky - Maddison was clearly looking for it, and was happy to jump into Lascelles’ leg, but there is a legitimate argument that it wasn’t a clear and obvious error. Ach, I haven’t a clue any more. I’d love a referee to one day give a penalty and book a player for simulation at the same time, as they’re not mutually exclusive.
“Is anyone surprised that Leicester were awarded such a tame penalty?” sniffs Rick Harris. “They are, after all, a big club aren’t they? City, Liverpool, Chelsea and United all had early Santa gifts yesterday so why not the Foxes?”
Behave yourself.
Half-time reading
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Half time: Leicester 1-0 Newcastle
Peep peep! Leicester lead through Youri Tielemans’ emphatic penalty, awarded controversially for a challenge by Jamaal Lascelles on James Maddison. Neither side created much, though Allan Saint-Maximin was as compelling as ever. See you in 10 minutes for the second half.
45+2 min Saint-Maximin is taken out just outside the area on the left. Play continues through Willock, whose cross finds Manquillo in space beyond the far post. His driven cross is blocked.
45+1 min Two minutes of added time.
45 min Apart from a few power surges from the wonderful Allan Saint-Maximin, Newcastle have been disappointing in attack.
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44 min: Great defending from Tielemans! When a set piece isn’t properly cleared, Saint-Maximin twists past two defenders on the right side of the area and stands up a beautiful cross to the far post. Tielemans, under considerable pressure, does very well to get to the ball first and head it behind for a corner.
41 min The more I see the penalty decision, the less convinced I am. But once it was given on the field, it was always unlikely to be overturned.
GOAL! Leicester 1-0 Newcastle (Tielemans 38 pen)
Youri Tielemans scores majestically, sweeping the ball high to his left. Dubravka went the wrong way.
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37 min: PENALTY TO LEICESTER! Lascelles is penalised for a lazy tackle on Maddison just inside the area. It’s a peedie bit soft - Lascelles dangled a leg and Maddison made the most of it - but I can’t see this being overturned.
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33 min Joelinton marches forward and plays a one-two with Almiron on the edge of the area, but the return ball is overhit.
31 min Shelvey’s free-kick is headed away by Soumare. This hasn’t been the greatest game so far.
27 min Lewis, who has just been booked, is penalised for a shove on Maddison. For a moment I thought he was going to park his tank on Raul Jimenez’s lawn by getting a second yellow, but Peter Bankes decided a word was sufficient.
24 min The resulting free-kick, taken by Maddison, skims the head of Wilson and flashes across goal. Ndidi reacts smartly to head it across the six-yard box, and Dubravka changes direction smartly to flap the ball away. I don’t think Ndidi’s header was going in anyway.
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23 min Saint-Maximin has a shot blocked by Thomas after a typically thrilling run. Leicester break and Lewis is booked for a foul on Daka.
21 min Thomas slides a pass through the inside-left channel for Dewsbury-Hall, who wins a corner off Shelvey. Maddison swings it deep and Dubravka claims comfortably.
19 min Leicester must have had at least 70 per cent of the possession. It’s all a bit ponderous, though, and so far Martin Dubravka has had nothing much to do.
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16 min Maddison whips the free-kick onto the roof of the net. Decent effort though it was, it never really looked like dipping under the bar.
15 min Barnes is shoved over by Willock 20 yards from goal. The free-kick is slightly to the left of centre, perfect for James Maddison.
13 min Castagne’s cross is put behind by Lewis for a Leicester corner. It’s played short to Dewsbury-Hall, whose near-post cross is cleared by a combination of Joelinton and Shelvey.
11 min Timothy Cantstandya is booked for cynically pulling back Saint-Maximin.
10 min Leicester look nervous, especially when their defensive players are on the ball, and Newcastle are pressing aggressively as a result.
8 min The resulting corner is punched away unconvincingly by Schmeichel. It drops to Schar*, eight yards out, and he cracks a volley that is crucially blocked by Thomas.
* I think
7 min Excellent pressing from Wilson, who wins the ball off Ndidi 30 yards from goal. He moves into the area, with Ndidi at his back, and hammers a cross-shot that is headed behind by Soyuncu.
6 min Soumare replaces Evans. He’ll go into midfield, with Wilfred Ndidi dropping into the defence.
5 min Boubakary Soumare is getting ready to replace Evans. Leicester have had desperate luck with injuries this season, particularly in defence.
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4 min Evans goes down off the ball with what looks like a hamstring injury. Newcastle play on, as is their right, and Almiron rattles a shot into the side netting from a tight angle.
1 min Peep peep! Leicester kick off from right to left.
“Are you in the UK permitted to have an American liveblog the games?” asks Joe Harvey. “We can watch all of them. I’m curious what the rules are- I think there are actually some weird ones in the US where you couldn’t do what gorilla cricket does.”
I think we are, though I wouldn’t bet my last sliver of dignity on it. I’m pretty sure the American office have done some Saturday 3pm games in the past, but I work remotely, and as a freelancer, so I’m a bit out of the loop.
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Eddie Howe’s pre-match thoughts
“We desperately needed that win [over Burnley], and winning just lifts you instantly. There’s been a different feeling around the club, but we still went back to work and I think we’ve had a really good week in training. Hopefully that shows today.”
Brendan Rodgers’ pre-match thoughts
“It’s been a challenging season for us with the number of players out and the challenge of European football. It has been difficult, but we have a fantastic bunch of players who are very focussed and honest.
“Our defensive record in the last two seasons has been very good. This season it’s been a big challenge for us, and having limited coaching time makes it that bit more difficult. But we have to overcome that, and hopefully that starts today.
“It’s huge [to have Youri Tielemans back]. He’s a top player and it’s great to have him back. It’s not just his ability; his view of the game really helps other players as well.”
There’s another 2pm Premier League game: Burnley v West Ham at Turf Moor. We don’t have a liveblog for that, as it’s not being televised in the UK and we at the Guardian are law-abiding citizens most of the time, but we will have goal updates.
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Leicester make two changes from the defeat in Naples. Luke Thomas replaces Ryan Bertrand at left-back, and Patson Daka is in for the rested Jamie Vardy. Both Bertrand and Vardy are on the bench.
Newcastle are unchanged, next.
Leicester (4-2-3-1) Schmeichel; Castagne, Evans, Soyuncu, Thomas; Tielemans, Ndidi; Maddison, Dewsbury-Hall, Barnes; Daka.
Substitutes: Ward, Bertrand, Ricardo, Nelson, Albrighton, Soumare, McAteer, Brunt, Vardy.
Newcastle (4-2-3-1) Dubravka; Manquillo, Schar, Lascelles, Lewis; Shelvey, Willock; Almiron, Joelinton, Saint-Maximin; Wilson.
Substitutes: Darlow, Ritchie, Hayden, Hendrick, Krafth, Fernandez, Fraser, Murphy, Gayle.
Referee Peter Bankes.
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The teams
The #lcfc starting XI for #LeiNew is confirmed! 📝 pic.twitter.com/e1YDKHF5G7
— Leicester City (@LCFC) December 12, 2021
Unchanged. 👊#LEINEW pic.twitter.com/OLvZRl1BpS
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) December 12, 2021
Preamble
We’ve all heard the stat. In the last two seasons Leicester spent 567 days in the top four, more than any other team, yet failed to qualify for the Champions League. They’ve solved the problem this season, though this wasn’t the solution they had in mind. Leicester’s highest position in 2021-22 is ninth, and they start today’s game at Newcastle in 11th place. They are also out of the Europa League, and many have reached for the facile cliché that Brendan Rodgers has taken Leicester as far as he can.
It’s not fair, it’s not remotely fair, but Rodgers is smart enough to recognise the volatility of modern life, never mind modern football. Liverpool sacked him 18 months after he almost won the league; Leicester sacked Claudio Ranieri nine months after he actually won it.
It’s only seven months since Leicester won the FA Cup on a glorious day at Wembley, yet clouds are gathering. They’ve had rotten luck with injuries, this season and last, and there’s an argument that Rodgers is being punished for his stoicism: had he complained as often as other Premier League managers, he would probably have received more sympathy for their ragged performances this season.
He didn’t and he hasn’t, and as a result he has crept up to fourth place on the list of doom: the page with the odds on the next Premier League manager to leave their job. Three of Leicester’s next five league games are against Spurs, Liverpool and Manchester City, and they also play Liverpool in the EFL Cup quarter-final. In short, Rodgers could really do with a win today.
There is probably less pressure on Newcastle, even though they are 19th in the table. Their next four games – Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United – are close to freebies, with any points a bonus. (It wouldn’t shock be a complete shock if they beat Leicester or United, as they’ve been playing pretty well of late, but it’s not essential.)
Last weekend’s vital win over Burnley means they are unlikely to be cut adrift before the fixtures get easier - and the transfer window opens - in the new year. For Eddie Howe, that will be the real quiz.
Kick off 2pm.
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