Andy King's Leicester City Milestones
Now at Bristol City, King has 378 Leicester City appearances and 62 goals to his name, and is undoubtedly one of the Club's all-time greats, having played a significant role in their rise since first signing for the Foxes in 2004.
His incredible story as a professional footballer has coincided with City’s ascent through English football’s ranks – after joining as a 16-year-old, King departed the Foxes as a Premier League, Championship and League 1 winner.
King’s City success began in his teenage years, and that is where the story begins.
Maiden silverware for King
His efforts in the Club’s youth setup were rewarded with a Premier Academy League title in 2007, when he helped City’s Under-18s to domestic success. It was clear ‘Kingy’ had the talent to become a professional footballer, and his hard work was rewarded later that year.
A first team bow
King’s first appearance for City’s senior side came in October 2007, during a goalless draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers. He went on to make 12 first team appearances in all competitions for the Club that season, and scored once during that period.
A thunderous debut strike
A memorable maiden goal for King, albeit during a narrow loss to Southampton came for King on 1 December, 2007, when he unleashed a stunning 35-yard strike past Kelvin Davis in front of the King Power Stadium crowd. It proved to be the first of 62 goals for the Foxes.
Claiming the League 1 title
The midfielder’s first full season as a Fox resulted in record-breaking League 1 glory under Nigel Pearson. City set new Club records for consecutive games unbeaten (23), most points gained in a season (96), most league games won (27) and fewest defeats (four) in a single season. King scored 11 goals in all competitions, including nine in the league.
Back in the Championship
King’s return to Championship football – the league he made his debut in – saw Leicester mount a brilliant surge into the play-offs, only to be thwarted by Cardiff City in the semi-finals. King scored in the second leg in Wales, who he now represented at international level, but City were denied a sensational Premier League return.
Prolific in blue
Having netted 11 goals in back-to-back seasons for City, the 2010/11 campaign truly was a breakthrough season for King’s goalscoring exploits. He was on target 17 times for club and country, and notched his first goal for Wales in a 5-1 win over Luxembourg, while also scoring in the FA Cup against Manchester City, who a year later would win the Premier League title.
Ruthless from range
The Wales midfielder’s ability was once again on show in 2012/13, when a superb strike against Peterborough United in the Foxes' first match of the new league campaign got them off to a winning start. He added another six Championship efforts to his name that term, but a dramatic play-off defeat at Watford prevented City from booking a final spot at Wembley.
Surging to Championship glory
After two attempts at promotion via the play-offs were thwarted, City secured promotion to the Premier League with another record-breaking campaign, with King once again at the heart of the action. Their 102-point haul surpassed the tally they achieved in the third tier in 2008/09, as did their league wins (31), as City finished nine points clear at the Championship summit.
The greatest of escapes
Leicester City’s 2014/15 campaign yielded one of the greatest escapes from relegation in Premier League history. Associated with that spirited comeback is King’s last-gasp winner against West Ham United, which kick-started a run of seven victories from their final nine games to finish in the relative comfort of 14th, despite spending much of the season in the bottom three.
Achieving the unthinkable
When City entered the 2015/16 Premier League campaign, they were favourites for relegation with odds as high as 5,000/1 to lift the title – but the latter is exactly what they did. On a gloriously wet afternoon in Leicester – 7 May, 2016 – King’s fine effort sealed a 3-1 win over Everton at King Power Stadium, before the Welshman sealed his third and most important league title as a Fox.
King’s stunner against Man City
With Jamie Vardy netting his maiden hat-trick for the Foxes, you could be forgiven for forgetting King’s brilliant goal against Manchester City. He swept home past Claudio Bravo to make it 2-0 after just five minutes before two more goals from Vardy secured a memorable win against one of England’s elite sides.
A European adventure
King was undoubtedly as excited as everyone associated with Leicester City when the Club embarked upon their maiden voyage in the UEFA Champions League in 2016/17. The midfielder played in four of Leicester’s European fixtures, including the quarter-final tie away to Atlético Madrid on 12 April, 2017.
King’s final goal for the Club
It is fitting that, having scored his first-ever goal for City against Southampton, his final strike in Leicester colours came against the Saints 10 years later. It came in another big win for Leicester, who recorded a 4-1 success on the south coast courtesy of King’s effort, a brace from Shinji Okazaki and Riyad Mahrez’s opener.