Here’s Paul Doyle’s match report from Vicarage Road:
Full time: Watford 0-1 Leicester City
Peep peep! A deserved win for Leicester, inspired by an excellent and courageous double substitution from Claudio Ranieri at half-time. They played with the authority of potential champions and are now five points clear at the top. Don’t try to make sense of it, because it will never make sense. Just enjoy one of the greatest stories we’ll see in our football-watching lifetime.
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90+3 min Watson drills the free-kick straight out of play for a goalkick.
90+2 min Morgan is booked. Watford have a free-kick on the left wing, which will be launched into the area.
90 min There will be four minutes of added time.
89 min Ake tries to play homage to Erik Edman, and fails.
88 min Watford replace Capoue with Obbi Oulare, their final substitution.
87 min Leicester break quickly and Schlupp crashes a shot wide of the near post from just inside the box. It wasn’t much of a chance, with at least two defenders between him and the goal.
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86 min “I’m at the Hackney Empire for the opera which got me thinking that Leicester’s season might be more suited to this form rather than the mooted movie,” says Gary Naylor. “Even more so if it ends with their Italian manager and English hero in each other’s arms in tragic failure.”
85 min Mahrez is coming off now, to be replaced by Daniel Amartey. He seems okay, so maybe that was just a false alarm.
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83 min Abdi’s long-range snapshot goes miles wide. For the first time Leicester have started to sit on their 1-0 lead. This would be such a big result, especially as it is so far the result of a superb performance.
81 min Mahrez is still moving awkwardly. He might regret this later tonight. Watford make another substitution, with Ikechi Anya replacing Nyom.
80 min A clever short-range lob from Deeney finds Ighalo six yards out, but he heads straight at Schmeichel. What a chance!
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78 min Mahrez appears to have pulled his hamstring. There was almost a hush as he pulled up and everybody realised what had happened, and the potential implications for Leicester’s title challenge. He’s actually trying to continue, which seems a bit daft, and now he has given the bench a signal that he is fine to continue.
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77 min Kante’s through pass is just behind Mahrez, who tries to drag it with his studs but can’t quite get the ball out of his feet. That allows Abdi to slide in and concede a corner, from which Huth’s header goes wide off the arm of Prodl. Leicester want a penalty or a corner. Watford get a goalkick.
75 min Fuchs is booked for repeat eejitry, in this case a foul on Amrabat.
74 min “My quick google didn’t find Vardy’s 100m time but it did unearth this, on 101 Great Goals, which places him at N°1 in the top ten fastest PL players with a speed of 35.44k/h, and four of his team mates are also in that standing,” says Michael Cosgrove. “The best 100m runner last year was, it appears, Theo Walcott.” Vardy looks faster than Walcott, certainly based on today’s evidence.
73 min A much better header from Huth, a superb clearance from Abdi’s dangerous cross.
72 min Huth misses an excellent chance from Fuchs’s inswinging free-kick, planting his header wide of the far post. He should probably have scored, and unsuccessfully attempts to divert attention from that fact by appealing for a penalty.
70 min Leicester have been absolutely outstanding since Claudio Ranieri’s half-time changes. They have played with such authority and confidence and could be two or three goals ahead.
67 min Mahrez dupes Watson with a lovely piece of skill before hitting a 25-yard curler that is held by Gomes as he dives to his right.
65 min A Watford substitution, with Aimen Abdi replacing Suarez.
63 min Amrabat, booked for diving in the first half, falls over after a challenge from Fuchs. Was that a penalty? Amrabat got straight to his feet anyway, turned and drilled a shot straight at Schmeichel. This is so open now, and moments later Schlupp smashes a beautiful low ball right across the six-yard area.
61 min Another dangerous low cross from Vardy, this time towards King, is cleared from inside his own six-yard box by Ake. It came after a delightful exchange between Vardy and Drinkwater. Vardy’s speed with and without the ball is terrifying. Has anyone ever timed him running the 100 metres?
60 min Another chance for Leicester! An incisive move ends when Vardy’s low cross towards Morgan is cleared from under his own crossbar by, er, a Watford defender.
59 min Nearly another one for Leicester. They took a clever short free-kick on the right to release Kante. His cross was headed firmly towards goal by Huth, straining his neck muscles like Bruce Banner undergoing the change, and Gomes made a vital save.
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58 min Ake is booked for hoofing Jamie Vardy up in the air.
Fuchs’s dangerous deep cross from the left was only half cleared. It came to Mahrez, 20 yards out to the left of centre, and he made room before curling it beautifully into the top corner at the near post. Actually, on reflection it may have taken a slight deflection but, ach, who cares? As things stand, Leicester are five points clear with nine games to play!
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GOAL! Watford 0-1 Leicester (Mahrez 56)
Yet another demonstration of Riyad Mahrez’s enormous class. This is a gorgeous goal!
55 min Leicester have had a lot of the ball since half time, which was presumably the point of Claudio Ranieri’s changes.
54 min Drinkwater toebungs a 25-yard shot well wide. That’s a rare poor touch in an excellent personal performance.
53 min Holebas earns a goalkick off Mahrez. Yes, I did just describe the winning of a goalkick. I have to type something. The second half hasn’t settled down yet.
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49 min A lovely Gascoigne-like surge from midfield by Suarez ends with a long-range shot that deflects off Huth and is held by the diving Schmeichel. It was a pretty comfortable save.
48 min As things stand, Leicester are three points clear of Spurs, six clear of Arsenal and eight clear of Manchester City, although City have a game in hand.
These hungry boys are on @SundaySupp from 9: @OllieHolt22, @JWTelegraph and @DickinsonTimes. pic.twitter.com/OQlwYvuZ1x
— Neil Ashton (@neilashton_) March 4, 2016
46 min Leicester begin the second half, kicking from right to left.
A double substitution for Leicester: Andy King and Jeff Schlupp replace Shinji Okazaki and Marc Albrighton. Claudio’s done a Tinkerman!
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In 1980-81, Villa only won five of their last 10 to win the title. It's feeling like that kind of race.
— Miguel Delaney (@MiguelDelaney) March 5, 2016
Half-time thoughts from Phil Podolsky “Is there another player it’s so easy to imagine seamlessly fitting into Barcelona’s front three as Mahrez?”
Me?
Half time: Watford 0-0 Leicester City
That was an excellent 45 minutes. Watford have played the better football, Leicester have had the best chance through Vardy. See you in 10 minutes for the second half.
45 min Morgan’s weak backheader is well short of Schmeichel, who flies out of his box to make a vital headed clearance.
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43 min Deeney eyes glory from 20 yards, and smashes it into Row J.
42 min A Leicester corner is half cleared to Simpson, who puts it back into the area from the right. Morgan, eight yards out, heads straight at Gomes. It wasn’t much of a chance as there was no pace on the ball and he was jumping from a standing position.
39 min Okazaki is harshly penalised for a foul on the indefatigable Holebas. It’s a free-kick to Watford, 35 yards from goal. Watson chips it into the box and it’s comfortably cleared.
35 min This is like a high-class lower-league game. That sounds patronising but it’s not meant that way; the point is that there is little of the wearying entitlement that is so familiar in matches involving the established clubs.
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33 min Morgan is a little fortunate not to be booked after dumping Ighalo over on the left wing.
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32 min Watson’s corner skims off the head of Prodl and is welted clear by Kante.
31 min Fuchs tries to see Capoue’s overhit cross out for a goalkick, and instead concedes a corner.
29 min Amrabat is booked for diving, right on the edge of the Leicester area. A rare moment of cynicism in a refreshingly innocent game.
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26 min A cross from the right breaks to Deeney, whose first-time shot deflects off Simpson and straight at Schmeichel.
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23 min Vardy misses a great chance! He started the move by robbing Prodl 30 yards from goal and playing it to Mahrez in space on the right of the box. Mahrez moved in on Gomes and then eased a pass square to Vardy, who shot wide of the near post from six yards. He was under significant pressure from the recovering Prodl, but the goal was empty and he will probably feel he should have scored.
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21 min “Regarding your 9th-minute comment,” begins Ian Copestake, “there is not much better than an open and breezy feel.”
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20 min Watford are into their work now, and are having more of the ball. It’s an enjoyable game, bright and breezy, and now Drinkwater wins a corner for Leicester. It’s headed out by Deeney.
18 min Fuchs has a slapstick hack at Amrabat, for which he might have been booked. Instead it’s a free-kick to Watford on the right, and nothing happens.
14 min Another simple long ball over the top from Fuchs allows Vardy to outpace Prodl, this time in the inside-left channel. As the ball bounces up he tries to belt it over Gomes from a ludicrous angle with his left foot. He scored a stunning goal in not dissimilar circumstances against Liverpool but this time his shot goes all the way across goal to safety.
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13 min Holebas and Capoue combine neatly again on the left before Bevilaqua Drinkwater intercepts well.
11 min Ake hits the bar for Watford! The chance came from a long, drilled free-kick by Amrabat (I think) near the halfway line on the right. Ake leapt superbly, above Morgan, and looped a header over Schmeichel that bounced off the top of the bar.
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9 min There’s a breezy, open feel to the match so far.
6 min Leicester have started superbly. Fuchs’ low cross finds Vardy, who spins smartly and forces Ake to concede a corner.
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4 min Leicester could be 2-0 up already. When a corner is half cleared, Fuchs hits an excellent low drive that is pushed out by the diving Gomes. Okazaki seems to have a tap in from the rebound but dithers slightly and Ake manages to get the ball away.
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2 min Leicester almost take the lead! Fuchs plays a straightforward long ball in behind the defence for Vardy, who zooms round the advancing Gomes before his shot from a tight angle is cleared off the line by Ake.
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1 min Almost a goal after 30 seconds. Holebas, who is only starting because of a late injury to Miguel Britos, plays a neat one-two and has a shot deflected into the hands of Schmeichel.
1 min Watford, in their funky yellow-and-black strip, kick off from right to left. Leicester are in white.
At Vicarage Road, where it's hard not to feel excited about the opportunity Leicester have. Kante, surprisingly, is back. Big test today tho
— Nick Ames (@NickAmes82) March 5, 2016
The teams are in the tunnel. It’s worth mentioning again that, if they win, Leicester will go five points clear with nine games to go. That would be a huge lead because you’d expect the teams below them to drop a few points before the end of the season.
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Whatever happens tonight, it will not, can not and should not top the astonishing finish to the match between these sides three years ago. Read all about it!
Team news
Watford (4-3-1-2): Gomes; Nyom, Prodl, Ake, Holebes; Mario Suarez, Watson, Capoue; Amrabat; Deeney, Ighalo.
Subs: Behrami, Oulare, Guedioura, Pantilimon, Anya, Abdi, Paredes.
Leicester (4-4-2): Schmeichel; Simpson, Morgan, Huth, Fuchs; Mahrez, Drinkwater, Kante, Albrighton; Vardy, Okazaki.
Subs: King, Amartey, Schlupp, Gray, Ulloa, Wasilewski, Schwarzer.
Referee: Jon Moss (W Yorkshire)
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Preamble
Hello. After what happened at White Hart Lane this afternoon, it’s tempting to see this game as a bit of a freebie for Leicester. After all, they will stay top regardless of what happens at Vicarage Road. But football doesn’t get played on a spreadsheet, and that vacillating swine we call the human brain certainly doesn’t work in a logical manner.
Leicester have lost two of their last 21 league games; a defeat today would mean they’d lost two of the last four, and the ARE THEY BOTTLING IT articles would appear by the dozen. In modern football, negativity has a nasty habit of perpetuating itself, so Leicester could do with maintaining the positive story for as long as possible.
This is probably their hardest game until May, and as such is one of the more important forks in their road. Win and they will be five points clear with nine games remaining, the first six of which look especially winnable; lose and even Newcastle at home will start to look fraught with peril. Such is the life of the mind, even more than usual in this wonderfully bonkers season.
Kick off is at 5.30pm GMT.
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