Leicester Beaten By Clinical Everton At King Power Stadium
City’s second Premier League match in the space of four days prompted manager Brendan Rodgers to make three changes to the side that beat Brighton & Hove Albion, with Papy Mendy, Cengiz Ünder - making is first Premier League start for the Club - and Harvey Barnes all returning.
Northern Ireland centre-back Jonny Evans missed out due to suspension, while birthday boy Wilfred Ndidi dropped into a central defensive role.
Striker Jamie Vardy, meanwhile, claimed a prestigious Club record of becoming the Foxes' all-time leading Premier League appearance-maker, surpassing Muzzy Izzet's record of 222 games.
With only one minute and 38 seconds on the clock, City came just inches away from an opener. A superb run from Barnes saw him dance past Mason Holgate on the left wing, and offload to Vardy, who teed up Youri Tielemans, only for the Belgium international's left-footed drive to fly narrowly wide of Robin Olsen's right-hand post.
No.10 James Maddison, who netted a brace, including a stunning second effort, against Brighton last time out, was next to try his luck as his 20-yard effort was blocked by England colleague Michael Keane.
The visiting side, however, defended their goal successfully and on 21 minutes, it was Richarlison who broke in from the left flank and sent a low strike into the bottom corner to net the opener on Filbert Way.
An opportunity to level matters immediately followed just two minutes later, but after Vardy connected with a James Justin cross, Olsen positioned himself well on his line to hold onto the header.
The Foxes continued to press and it was the lively Ünder who next looked to ripple the back of the net on 25 minutes as he drifted in from the right before his curling strike deflected just over the bar.
The Toffees, though, looked dangerous on the counter-attack and only some quick thinking from Kasper Schmeichel, to smother the ball, prevented Gylfi Sigurðsson from steering home an initial effort from Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
Both sides traded blows towards the end of the first half, with Sigurðsson and Calvert-Lewin combining again as the latter headed the former's free-kick into the arms of Schmeichel, before City raced up the other end, resulting in Ünder forcing Olsen into a low stop.
A last-ditch challenge from Abdoulaye Doucouré, to prevent Vardy from having a shot on goal, was the last action in first-half injury-time, and it was Everton who carried a one-goal advantage into the break.
Bookings for Holgate and Ben Godfrey inside the opening five minutes of the second half were signals of intent from Everton - to frustrate City's attacking movements as they went in search of a leveller in Leicester.
Tielemans struck wide on 53 minutes before, after some good footwork, Ünder had a shot halted by the Everton backline - the Turkey winger's final contribution of the game before being replaced by Ayoze Pérez in City's first substitution.
Maddison then blasted over with 25 minutes of normal time remaining, but it was Everton who struck next after Holgate converted from inside six-yard box, with Calvert-Lewin's effort initially being tipped onto the bar by Schmeichel, who had already pulled off an excellent stop to deny Keane's header in the build-up.
Rodgers introduced Kelechi Iheanacho for the restart in a bid to get his side back in the match, while on 78 minutes, Sigurðsson lifted over as Everton attempted to extend their advantage.
With 10 minutes to play, Pérez did well to win the ball off André Gomes and tee up Vardy, whose shot hit the mid-rift of Doucouré in the opposition box before the former Watford midfielder could clear his lines.
Pérez and Gomes came together again three minutes later, when the Everton man appeared to trip the Spaniard in the area. While a penalty was initially awarded, after a VAR check, the decision was that there was no foul and the visiting side were awarded a free-kick.
Defender Yerry Mina then nodded straight at Schmeichel on 87 minutes, before Pérez saw his attempt deflected behind. The City No.17 then converted Vardy's flick-on from the resulting corner, but up went the assistant referee's flag for offside and any hope of a Leicester comeback was halted.
Major moment
Barely two minutes after Richarlison had given Carlo Ancelotti's side a 1-0 lead, Jamie Vardy directed a header on goal from a James Justin delivery that, on any other day, would have nestled in the back of the net.
However, Toffees stopper Robin Olsen was in the right place at the right time to hold onto the effort, and the encounter was settled on 72 minutes through Mason Holgate's close-range effort.
Who impressed?
Matt Elliott, speaking on LCFC Radio, said: "For me, there’s been one stand-out figure. He’s still developing, he’s still young and he’s still raw, but what a talent he is – and that’s Wesley Fofana."
Where do we stand?
After their 13th outing in the 2020/21 Premier League season, City are now in fourth position in the table, after Southampton moved up to third with a 1-1 draw at 10-man Arsenal.
Coming up…
Up next for Brendan Rodgers’ side is a trip to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to face José Mourinho’s outfit on Sunday (2:15pm kick-off) before they entertain Manchester United at King Power Stadium on Boxing Day (12:30pm kick-off).
All times GMT.