Jamie Vardy's Golden Boot: Every Single Goal
Despite making his top-flight debut at the age of 27, Vardy is now a member of the Premier League 100 Club and has written his name onto an illustrious list of Golden Boot winners. A list which features the likes of Alan Shearer, Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo, Luis Suárez and Mohamed Salah now includes City's iconic No.9 - the Club's all-time top Premier League goalscorer.
Of his 23 goals, 11 were converted by his right foot, nine with his left, and three were headers, while four of them were netted from the penalty spot as Vardy wrote his name into folklore again.
To celebrate Vardy's latest achievement - becoming the first Fox to finish top of the charts in England's top division since Gary Lineker in 1985 - LCFC.com remembers each of his efforts this term...
A childhood Sheffield Wednesday fan led the line for the Foxes when they visited newly-promoted Sheffield United on Saturday 24 August. Much of the pre-match discussion centred around Vardy's return to south Yorkshire in the build-up to the encounter with Chris Wilder's Blades - and he didn't disappoint. A sublime through ball from James Maddison played him in on goal and Vardy, in front of the Kop, crashed home an emphatic effort beyond Dean Henderson. Naturally, Leicester's No.9 felt the need to remind the home faithful that they'd spent the previous 37 minutes booing him from the stands. Harvey Barnes, meanwhile, netted City's eventual Goal of the Season to wrap up a 2-1 victory.
Seven days later, when Ben Chilwell collected the ball on the edge of his own area, the King Power Stadium crowd were just seconds away from witnessing a moment of sheer quality at the other end of the pitch. The England full-back unleashed an inch-perfect forward ball to Vardy. The former Fleetwood Town striker just needed one touch, on the bounce, before sending an exquisite chip over Aaron Ramsdale - from outside the area - to give City the lead over AFC Bournemouth. That delightful finish reminded many of a similar strike against Tottenham Hotspur in 2017/18 and put Leicester on course for another big three points.
The usefulness of City's high-press became evident once again later in the game against Eddie Howe's Cherries. After Callum Wilson's leveller, Youri Tielemans had put the Foxes back in front, but the home side needed another goal to cement their authority over the clash. It came with 17 minutes still to play as Maddison won back possession in Bournemouth's own penalty area. The England star's tackle enabled him to find Tielemans and the Belgian's first-time pass to Vardy allowed the Foxes striker to just cushion the ball beyond Ramsdale once more and secure a 3-1 success on Filbert Way.
The visit of Steve Bruce's Newcastle United had, for a spell at least, been a frustrating outing for Leicester. They led at the break through Ricardo Pereira's 16th-minute effort, but the Magpies remained in the game despite City's domination. However, when Issac Hayden was dismissed just before the break, Leicester went on to register their largest-ever Premier League home victory. The second-half scoring spree began in the 54th minute as Jonny Evans located Barnes on the left channel, before the Academy graduate scooped a ball through to Vardy. Despite a tight angle, the power in his shot was enough to evade Martin Dúbravka's grasp.
An own goal by Paul Dummett had made it 3-0 to the Foxes before, in the 64th minute, Vardy added his second of the game in the rain at King Power Stadium. Substitute Marc Albrighton's cross was a gift for Leicester's No.9, who just needed to nod it past Dúbravka's from three yards out to assert the home side's command even further on the scoresheet. It got better for Brendan Rodgers' hosts before the final whistle as Wilfred Ndidi added a fifth goal to seal a fourth win in five games for the ruthless Foxes in the early weeks of the 2019/20 campaign. Since Rodgers' appointment, on the other hand, Vardy had scored more Premier League goals than any other player (14 in 17 appearances).
Vardy had once again attracted the derision of the away supporters at King Power Stadium when Burnley visited Leicester on Saturday 19 October. It was becoming a tradition for Vardy to reply in the best possible manner - by scoring - and that trend continued in the 45th minute against the Clarets. A tidy passage of play from the Foxes came to a crescendo when Barnes whipped in a cross from the left channel and there was Vardy to send a header past Nick Pope. A cupped-ear celebration - aimed at the away end - marked the occasion for the Foxes forward before Tielemans bagged the three points in the second half.
One of the greatest nights in Leicester City's Premier League history naturally had Vardy front and centre at Southampton on Friday 25 October. In torrential rain, the Foxes were already 4-0 up by the time Vardy wrote his own name onto the scoresheet with a composed close-range finish before the interval. When opening goalscorer Chilwell's pass deflected off James Ward-Prowse, it came through to Vardy in the area. An inventive first touch allowed him to break free from Maya Yoshida and a low finish made it 5-0 to Leicester before the break. It also helped them become only the second away side in Premier League history to ever lead 5-0 at half-time (Manchester City vs. Burnley in April 2010).
Less than a minute after Ayoze Pérez had completed his hat-trick, Vardy netted his second of the night, nodding Chilwell's chipped cross past Angus Gunn in the Saints' net. It was turning into a torrid night for the home side - who went on an excellent run of form shortly after this defeat - while the travelling Blue Army could hardly believe their eyes at St. Mary's Stadium. Maddison swept home a breathtaking free-kick on 85 minutes as City closed in on a Premier League record. Another for Vardy, meanwhile, would mean City became only the second side in the Premier League to have two hat-trick heroes in one game (Jermaine Pennant and Robert Pires for Arsenal vs. Southampton in May 2003).
When Vardy won a penalty in the 90th minute, City's No.9 had the chance to make it nine with his ninth goal of the season. As commentators scrambled to find out the last time such a feat had been achieved, the 33-year-old stepped up - with the last kick of the game - to secure the biggest top-flight away victory in 131 years. His penalty was perfectly struck - sealing his second LCFC hat-trick in the process - and it proved to be the last act of an extraordinary story on the south coast. The former biggest away win in the Premier League came in February 1999, as Manchester United beat Nottingham Forest 8-1 at the City Ground, with substitute Ole Gunnar Solskjær famously scoring four goals in 10 minutes.
The Foxes were really gathering some momentum when they visited Crystal Palace on Sunday 3 November. Çağlar Söyüncü's maiden goal for the Football Club put them on course for a third successive victory in the capital before, with just two minutes of normal time remaining, substitute Demarai Gray threaded a pass through to Vardy, leaving Vicente Guaita no chance in the Palace net. A brilliant celebration - mimicking an eagle - typified the swashbuckling nature of Leicester's start to the 2019/20 season. Vardy said at full-time: "The creativity and attacking talent we have is incredible. We have so many options and it can only benefit us."
City were utterly dominant against Unai Emery's Arsenal, too, but it remained goalless until the 68th minute on Filbert Way. Rodgers' men had to be patient, but when Ricardo linked up with Barnes, who in turn found Tielemans, the latter's pass to Vardy was an invitation he couldn't turn down. Bernd Leno could do nothing to stop his first-time strike bulge the back of the net as Vardy raced away to celebrate by punching the corner flag in delight. It was a real moment of euphoria for the home fans and the Foxes players themselves, before Maddison added another for Leicester, who were at the height of their powers in November.
Pérez's opener gave the Foxes a deserved lead over Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday 23 November, but they needed another goal to be sure of securing their fifth consecutive win. Vardy won a penalty with around 10 minutes to spare, but despite being denied by Mat Ryan - before Maddison headed the rebound into an empty net - referee Mike Dean ordered it be retaken due to encroachment in the box after an intervention by VAR. The pressure was on, then, as Vardy had already been frustrated by Ryan from 12 yards, but his low drive into the bottom left corner eventually made it 2-0 to the flying Foxes in Brighton.
Marco Silva's Everton threatened to bring a halt to Leicester's excellent form at the start of December with Richarlison giving the Merseysiders a lead at King Power Stadium. Rodgers' men remained composed, though, and they were level on 68 minutes when Kelechi Iheanacho's deep cross from the right flank was prodded home by Vardy at the far post. It got even better for Foxes in the final moments as Iheanacho's effort, initially disallowed, was legitimised by VAR, sparking magnificent scenes of jubilation for the Blue Army at full-time. Leicester had now won six consecutive top-flight matches for the first time since the Club-record run of seven victories in 1963.
The visit of managerless Watford was another fixture which required patience from Leicester, who had calls for a first-half penalty turned down by Craig Pawson before half-time. They did get a spot-kick 10 minutes into the second period, though, and Vardy dumbfounded Ben Foster in the Hornets net to give the home side a deserved lead against their stubborn visitors. Maddison's breakaway second later on made it seven wins in a row for the Foxes. Vardy's penalty, meanwhile, meant he had netted 50 Premier League goals at home for City, 30 more than second-placed Muzzy Izzet (20).
If Leicester were to be successful in making it a Club-record eight top-flight wins in a row, Vardy would surely be one of the architects. A new diamond formation was executed to perfection at Aston Villa by the Foxes as Iheanacho played in Vardy to give the visitors a one-goal lead - at the second attempt - after rounding Tom Heaton. The ear-cup celebration was back, too, after the home fans suspected he'd missed the opportunity to open the scoring with an initially-scuffed finish.
Iheanacho had made it two before the break, but a Jack Grealish strike narrowed the arrears. Villa will have been confident of lodging a second-half comeback against their Midlands neighbours, but the Foxes had other ideas. Firstly, Evans made it 3-1 to Leicester, before Vardy's frightening pace allowed him to race clear of everyone in Villa's defence to cap off a devastating counter-attack in front of the Holte End and score in his eighth consecutive top-flight outing. City had also won their last four away Premier League matches by an aggregate scoreline of 17-1.
While Leicester suffered just their third league defeat of the Premier League season at Manchester City on Saturday 21 December, it included another magic Vardy moment. Barnes' forward pass gave him the room to run at Man City's defence and Fernandinho couldn't keep up. The finish, meanwhile, was magnificent as Vardy just dinked it over Ederson - the eventual winner of the Golden Glove award - in the home side's net.
Injury would contribute to a rare goalless patch for Vardy over the New Year but when Villa visited King Power Stadium in March - during City's last game before the 2019/20 season was paused due to COVID-19 - the 33-year-old emerged from the bench to add two more strikes to his incredible tally. The first was a penalty - sending Pepe Reina the wrong way in the second half - after the Spaniard had already been beaten by Barnes in the 40th minute.
His second goal of the night, however, was all of his own making as he galloped into Villa's penalty area and benefited from a fortuitous deflection before firing a low drive into the bottom corner. Vardy was back for the Foxes and Barnes made it 4-0 before full-time. Despite 644 minutes without a goal, Vardy still led the way in the Premier League scoring charts. Little did they know it at the time, but Leicester would have to wait three months for their next top-flight fixture.
Iheanacho's 49th-minute opener had put Leicester on course for their first Premier League win since the restart - and Vardy, who'd been on 99 top-flight goals since March, finally reached a century later on. It came as Crystal Palace defender Mamadou Sakho lost out to Barnes in the area, before the young Foxes midfielder selflessly teed up his team-mate for a simple finish from eight yards out. That goal meant he became the first player in Leicester's history to notch 100 goals in the Premier League era. Of the 29 players to have so far netted 100 Premier League goals, only Ian Wright (28 years, 286 days) made his debut at an older age than Vardy (27 years, 232 days).
Vardy in fact eclipsed the 100-goal landmark, too, by racing free of Palace's backline before unleashing a nonchalant finish beyond Guaita - a goalkeeper who had come to dread the sight of him - to seal a 3-0 success for the Foxes. That also meant Leicester remained unbeaten in all of their home games against sides from the capital in a single Premier League season for the first time since the 2000/01 campaign.
Over the years, City's iconic striker has pestered Arsenal goalkeepers past and present, and on Tuesday 7 July, he notched his 10th career goal against the Gunners in a 1-1 draw at Emirates Stadium. Leicester had more than held their own against Arsenal - now under the management of former captain Mikel Arteta - especially in the second half, but an earlier effort from fellow Golden Boot contender Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang gave the home side a lead. Up stepped Vardy, though, to get on the end of a precise cross from Gray with just six minutes remaining in north London to rescue a point. Only Wayne Rooney (12) has scored more Premier League goals against the Gunners.
Vardy's final goal of 2019/20 may not have been his prettiest, but it ended up being vital in his hunt for a maiden Golden Boot prize. Seizing on a loose ball in the Bournemouth penalty area at Vitality Stadium, the 33-year-old prodded it past Ramsdale to give the Foxes a lead on the south coast. While the game ended in disappointment for City, that effort prevented Vardy from sharing the Golden Boot with Aubameyang and Danny Ings, who finished one goal behind him. His 23-goal haul includes one hat-trick, five braces and 10 solitary efforts, while Leicester have won on 13 occasions in which Vardy has found the net this season.