Paul Doyle's match report
Full-time: Leicester 1-1 Stoke
Maguire clears the corner and that’s that. I’d say 1-1 is a fair result. Leicester had more chances but Stoke played much better in the second half and though a point means they stay in the relegation zone, the players look like they care and are giving everything for Paul Lambert and the club’s fans. Leicester move above Burnley and into seventh. Thanks for your emails. I’ll leave you with this thought: I wonder if Wes Morgan has played against both Kevin Campbell and his son Tyrese? Or maybe Kasper Schmeichel has. One to look up, if you’re an occasional nerd like me. Also, that was a much better second half. It had to be. Oh, that’s two thoughts. Bye.
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90+3 min: Stoke win their first corner of the match!
90+2 min: Stoke have a go themselves with Bauer racing up the right touchline before cutting the ball back towards campbell at the back post. Chilwell just gets a touch on it and Leicester clear.
90 min: You know Leicester have the bit between their teeth when Wes Morgan strides out of defence like a latterday Beckenbauer. He sets up an attack on the right but Stoke snuff out the danger.
88 min: It’s the Charlie Adam show! He underclubs with a backwards header and sends Mahrez through on goal. The Algerian draws Butland out of goal and tries to dink it over him but the keeper gets something on it and slows the ball’s progress enough that Zouma can zoom back and clear for a corner. The corner is played short and the resulting cross is headed against the far post by Matty James and there then follows a brilliant goalmouth scramble that red-and-white striped desperate legs win. Somehow, Stoke are still level at 1-1.
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87 min: Adam buys a foul off Ndidi 25 yards from goal in a central position. The big Scot dust himself off and blooters the ball straight into the wall.
86 min: Leicester are having a spell of possession. It ends when Mahrez tries to belt one home from 35 yards. It’s a hopeful effort that ends up somewhere near Oadby.
85 min: Choupo-Moting, who has worked hard and can be satisfied with his day’s work, is off, and Glen Johnson is on. I forgot Glen Johnson existed.
83 min: A rare counter-attack from Stoke. Choupo-Moting rides Albrighton’s challenge on the halfway line and slides the ball into Shaqiri in the inside-left channel. The little Swiss forward squirts the ball across the six-yard line looking for Campbell, but his cross is at least two yards in front of the young forward.
82 min: Wahey! Adam hauls back Iheanacho in midfield and there’s his booking. Well done Charlie!
81 min: Adam hasn’t fouled anyone in the past two minutes. What’s going on?
78 min: Albrighton aims at the back post with his delivery but Stoke clear to Mahrez. He drops his shoulder and whips a left-footed shot towards the far post that Butland does brilliantly to fling himself at and paw away. Instinctive, fine goalkeeping that helps make up for his earlier error. Leicester come back and the ball is worked to Maguire on the right side of teh penalty area. He somehow burst past his marker and thunders a shot into the near post. There’s an almighty clatter and Stoke survive.
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77 min: Leicester win their ninth corner.
76 min: Adam is late on Iheanacho right on the edge of teh Leicester area. He gets none of the ball and a piece of the young striker’s shin. It’s a clear free-kick but Oliver, presumably, doesn’t see it.
74 min: Adam takes about 20 seconds to introduce a piece of Dundee to Morgan’s buttocks. He’s lucky to get away without a booking. His studs scraped down the big defenders cheeks.
73 min: Martins Indi, who has been brilliant for Stoke, is taken off. Adam is on in his place, which means Cameron will shift back to centre-half. That’s an odd substitution. I can only imagine Martins Indi is injured.
Goal! Leicester 1-1 Stoke (Butland OG 71)
Oh dear! Butland has made an absolute howler. Mahrez prods a clever little pass behind Stafylidis to Albrighton, who races to the byline and wallops a cross at the near post intended for Vardy’s outstretched studs. Butland, perhaps distracted by Vardy, watches the ball clatter into his midriff and into the net. He looks crestfallen. Stoke’s fine work has been undone.
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67 min: Paul Lambert has just been asked to change his training top from a blue one to a white one on Kasper Schmeichel’s instructions. Apparently, the Leicester keeeper kept thinking he was Mahrez. I can’t imagine the Algerian will be happy to hear that.
66 min: The home fans are restless. Stoke are working harder than Leicester and giving them no time on the ball. The result is that Stoke are now the dominant force and are on top.
65 min: Meanwhile in Bundesliga 2.
@GreggBakowski this just happened in 2.Bundesliga. keeper sipping a drink while allowing a goal.
— ((( ɹǝzuɐdʞuǝp ))) (@DenkpanzerNK) February 24, 2018
64 min: Time for Paul Lambert to respond to Puel’s move. Diouf is off and 18-year-old Tyrese Campbell is on in his stead. He is the son of Kevin Campbell, which makes me feel incredibly old. The Stoke fans sing his name heartily. What must that feel like for a teenager. Bloody great, I imagine.
60 min: Gray, who I have barely seen since the 12th minute, is replaced by Fousseni Diabaté, a creative midfielder who, like Mahrez, was spotted in the French second division. And Simpson is replaced by Kelechi Iheanacho, which means Leicester are going to three at the back.
58 min: Mahrez runs into a Choupo-Moting-Cameron sandwich and wins a free-kick 40 yards out. It’s a decent position, just to the left of the D, but Leicester’s deliveries have been well below par today. Albrighton and Mahrez have both been culpable.
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56 min: Schmeichel, whose passing has been brilliant today, gathers the ball at his feet outside the penalty area on the right and connects horribly with his attempted clearance, watching the ball bobble off the turf and barely make the halfway line. Allen beats Ndidi to the ball and feeds Shaqiri, who takes one touch and – with Schmeichel still racing back towards his goal – attempts to curl the ball into the far corner with his left foot. But his attempt is a foot wide. Schmeichel wouldn’t have got there.
54 min: Allen is late into a tackle. He needs to be careful. He’s on a yellow card. Stoke can’t afford to lose him and won’t want to substitute him, such is his quality.
52 min: I may be inviting trouble here, but it feels like Tony Pulis is in radio control of this Stoke defence today. They’ve won everything. To help make my point there’s half a whiff of danger in the Stoke box after another Leicester free-kick that is whipped into the box, but Martins Indi (again) hoofs clear under pressure from Morgan.
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50 min: Shaqiri wrestles Albrighton to the ground about a year after the Leicester player has popped his pass away. It’s a stupid free-kick to concede. Thankfully, Mahrez underhits the ball into the box and Stoke clear easily.
47 min: Albrighton has had one of those games so far. He’s seen a lot of the ball but he’s been tuned into a different frequency to his team-mates. His passes have often been a tad overhit or not understood. Ah well, there’s time yet.
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The second half
45 min: Leicester get off to a quick start, with Mahrez dancing into the box and then Albrighton watching a hefty strike at goal blocked by Martins Indi’s outstretched right leg. That’s more like it.
Adam Timmins writes: “Although I have little sympathy for him, it’s still kind of sad to see what’s happened to Berahino. The turning point in his career as it stands was when Spurs first came in for him in January 2015 and WBA turned them down. It turned Berahino’s head, and his career has gone downhill ever since.” Yes, I’d love to know what would have happened to his career had he signed for Spurs. Could he be playing off Kane now? Or would he be out on loan at, um, Stoke?
“I’ve seen better football,” says Sven. And he’s managed England. Honk.
Having watched that goal back, Leicester’s defence may as well have written Shaqiri an invitation to score that goal. Maguire, in particular, backed off and gave Shaqiri the chance to dust off his right boot and curl that shot home.
Half-time: Leicester 0-1 Stoke
If ever a half needed a goal, it was that one. Thank you Xherdan.
45 min: It wouldn’t be fair to say Stoke deserve that goal but the fact that Leicester haven’t ever fully taken control of the game, and have been sloppy in possession, always made a Stoke goal a possibility. It’s made the second half more interesting anyway.
Goal! Leicester 0-1 Stoke (Shaqiri 44)
The away fans are excited now. Ndidi (stupidly) tries to backheel the ball up the line only to be shoved off it by Allen. As sharp as you like, he feeds Shaqiri, who is 35 yards from goal. He burst forwards and shifts the ball on to his right foot then uses Maguire’s ample midriff as a guide to bend the ball around and into Schmeichel’s bottom left-hand corner. It’s a sumptuous finish and the forward’s fourth goal in four games.
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41 min: You can hear the fidgeting of (possibly gloved) fingers at the King Power Stadium. There is nothing to get the home (or away) fans excited.
39 min: Leicester haven’t been able to win the midfield battle, so they’re unable to play football anywhere other than the flanks. Vardy could really do with a ball played in behind the centre-backs but Allen, Ndiaye and Cameron are keeping that supply line closed off.
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37 min: Schmeichel does it again. A low and hard fizzing 30-yarder played out of his hands to Mahrez on the right. Stop it Kasper, you’re spoiling us.
35 min: Schmeichel clears the ball to Mahrez. It’s one of the game’s highlights. I’ve tried to be optimistic thus far but who am I kidding. This half has been awful.
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32 min: Albrighton pings a glorious cross-field pass to Mahrez’s left boot. He races to the byline and whistles an inviting low ball across the six-yard box that is cleared out for a corner at the back post. The corner is whipped in to the near post but Butland wallops the ball clear with his right fist while connecting with Ndiaye’s noggin. He hits the turf but is ready to continue after a brief visit by the physio.
30 min: Stoke win a free-kick and Shaqiri fluffs his attempted delivery like a golfer topping his tee shot. The ball is walloped up to Mahrez on the right. His first touch, an outside-of-the-foot-trap-on-the-move, is a thing of beauty. He scuttles up to the edge of the box and drops his shoulder to create a yard for a left-footed shot at goal. But his execution is poor and the ball drifts a yard wide.
27 min: Allen snaps into a tackle on Mahrez and scrambles to his feet before showing great composure to swivel his hips and slide a little pass into Shaqiri to launch a counter-attack. The little Swiss muscle man floats a ball over the top of Leicester’s defence on to Diouf’s chest but the offside flag is raised. Fine play from Allen there but he’ll have to be careful given that he’s on a booking.
26 min: Leicester are well on top again but they’ve yet to create a chance of note. They win two corners but Stoke’s defence has been shepherded brilliantly so far by Martins Indi and Zouma. Are Stoke entering the post-Shawcross future? He’s injured today, by the way.
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22 min: Diouf is booked for a lunge at Mahrez’s ankles. The pitch-side microphones pick up a dull thud and a scream from the Algerian. A clearer booking as you’ll ever see and a fine example of a striker’s challenge. Diouf tries to shake Mahrez’s hands but he’s having none of it.
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19 min: Ndidi launches himself into a tackle on Cameron and wins possession easily. He then hoiks a ball into the air towards Vardy, who is lurking on Martins Indi’s shoulder. The ball drops and Vardy gives Martins Indi a shove but the big centre-back is having none of it and clatters the ball away.
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17 min: Mahrez sends two Stoke players for an early lunch with a textbook Cruyff turn in midfield before launching an attack down the left. For all that Mahrez has seen plenty of the ball on the right, Gray and Albrighton have enjoyed a little more space in which to operate on the left. On this occasion, Bauer sticks to his task diligently and wins back possession off Albrighton. A moment later, Albrighton goes into the book for a late tackle on Shaqiri.
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14 min: Gray angles a right-footed cross towards Mahrez, who drifts off Stafylidis at the back post, but the full-back does well to leap and head the ball out for a corner. Mahrez, plays it short and Albrighton clips it in to the box but to no avail.
12 min: Albrighton attempts to inject a few much-needed snappy short passes into the game. Two of them are decent but his third goes straight to Shaqiri and initiates a Stoke attack. It’s an attack that is easily snuffed out on the right as Chilwell blocks Bauer’s attempted cross, but the home team need to take better care of the ball than that - show it a little love, get to know it better why don’t you.
10 min: Maguire catches Shaqiri. It’s another free-kick near the halfway line. Shaqiri punts a hopeful ball to the back post. It’s easily defended. A bit of quality would help. Where’s Mahrez gone?
8 min: It’s very quickly descended into a bitty midfield battle. Joe Allen is booked for a mis-timed snap at Gray’s ankles near the halfway line. Albrighton flights the ball towards the penalty area, but it’s overhit and drifts out for a goal-kick.
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6 min: Stoke win a free-kick 35 yards out over towards the left. Shaqiri whips it in towards Cameron on the back post but Maguire uses his considerable bulk to hold off the big Stoke midfielder and watch the ball go out for a goal-kick.
4 min: Mahrez is on the ball again over on the right. Stafylidis is making his full Stoke debut today and may be in for a torrid afternoon. One drop of the shoulder and Mahrez buys a yard to curl a low left-footed shot a yard wide of Butland’s right-hand post.
3 min: Stoke have barely had a touch.
2 min: Mahrez is immediately lively, wiggling his hips and winning a throw-in and a corner in quick succession. Stoke defend the first corner and concede a second one. Mahrez whips it in to the back post but Martins Indi heads it out for a third corner. It’s only half-cleared to James, on the edge of the box, who delays his shot – perhaps struggling to see the ball in the low winter sun – before thrashing it over the bar. Good start from Leicester.
Kick-off!
Peep! Leicester, in traditional royal blue, kick-off. They’re going from left to right. Stoke, in their home red and white stripes they’ve sported since 1908, are going the other way.
The teams trot out of the tunnel on to the King Power Stadium pitch to the post horn gallop. It’s nippy out there, just 3C at kick-off. Hopefully, that will encourage a fast start and plenty of zippy passes and runs to warm the players up. Either that, or a hamstring will twang early on.
Saido Berahino is not in the Stoke squad today, which means he’s about as likely to score as he would be had he been named in the starting lineup or on the bench. Poor Saido, he’s almost reached two years without a goal. He last scored on 27 February 2016.
We’ll see two of the Premier League’s stockiest players collide this afternoon, Xherdan Shaqiri and Harry Maguire. Shaqiri reminds me of a chest of drawers on legs while Maguire has overtaken Wes Morgan as Leicester’s chunky wardrobe at the back. Stoke’s attackers will have to take the adventurous route to get round that brawny pairing.
Claude Puel is asked if Riyad Mahrez is ready to return in the Premier League: “Yes, he played very well against Sheffield United and he came back quickly at a good level and with good feet. He enjoys his football and with his team-mates he has a good understanding and he will play a good game today.” Well, I think that what’s he said. Puel never breaks out of a whisper. How he gets his instructions across to his players is one of football’s great mysteries.
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Leicester’s Marc Albrighton has just been thrust in front of a microphone and asked for his thoughts on today’s game. Here they are: “We’ve got to keep improving on our position. The manager wants to finish first in that ‘second’ league. That’s our aim. We’ve had a couple of slip-ups in the league lately but we hope to get back to winning ways. We’ve had to add a lot to our play [under Claude Puel], our buildup play and a slightly different counter-attacking [style]. We’ll need to fight all over the pitch. Second balls will be a major part of the game today. They’ll be physical but they can play as well.”
Yes, they can, and Joe Allen is such an important part of making Stoke tick. While he’s busying himself on the ball in midfield, Choupo-Moting, Diouf and Shaqiri can expect to see more clever passes popped into their feet. Also, isn’t the ‘second’ league the one below Manchester City down to Arsenal? Surely he means the ‘third’ league.
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Sven-Göran Eriksson is a pundit for Sky Sports at this game today. I assumed that in the winter months he was never more than two yards from a sun-lounger.
The teams
Leicester: Schmeichel, Simpson, Morgan, Maguire, Chilwell, Mahrez, James, Ndidi, Albrighton, Gray, Vardy. Subs: Iheanacho, Adrien Silva, Dragovic, Jakupovic, Iborra, Fuchs, Diabate.
Stoke: Butland, Bauer, Martins Indi, Zouma, Stafylidis, Allen, Cameron, Ndiaye, Shaqiri, Choupo-Moting, Diouf. Subs: Pieters, Johnson, Jese, Adam, Sobhi, Grant, Campbell.
Referee: Michael Oliver (Northumberland)
Preamble
Afternoon. Both these sides have struggled for form in the past few games; two losses and a draw for Leicester – including that 5-1 hammering at Manchester City last time out – and two draws and a loss for Stoke. At least Paul Lambert has given Stoke a bit of backbone in their scrap for survival, though. “I’ve got that fight and commitment from them and you can’t ask for any more,” he roared in his pre-match press conference. “We’ve got 11 cup finals and that won’t change. At least I know we’ve got the confidence to go and win. We won’t set our stall out to defend because I know we’ve got players that can hurt them.”
The problem for Stoke is that Leicester have a player returning to the starting lineup who can hurt them. It’s little surprise the Foxes’ form has dipped in Riyad Mahrez’s failed transfer-related absence. But a cosy meeting with his team-mates appears to have helped bring him back into the fold and if he plays to only 75% of his potential today, then Jamie Vardy can expect Leicester’s supply line to be fruitful.
Still, I expect this to be a close contest, as it has been through history. The overall record reads: Leicester wins 29 Stoke wins 28 Draws 28. A win for second-bottom Stoke will take them up to 15th, seven points behind Leicester, in eighth. Well, it will until 4.45pm at least. A draw would leave them in the relegation zone. A win or a draw for Leicester would knock Burnley out of the seventh place that they have occupied since what seems like the dawn of time.
My prediction: Leicester 2-2 Stoke
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