Jamie Vardy: Leicester City's Record-Breaking No.9
City's effervescent No.9 epitomises the hard work and graft that, along with the undoubted quality and ability he possesses, can take a player right to the very top.
Making his Premier League debut at the age of 27, it didn't take the Sheffield-born frontman long to find his feet in England's top division. Now turning 34, Vardy has produced some incredible numbers.
After a combined total of 21 goals in 70 appearances during his first two seasons at the Club, the arrival of Premier League football at King Power Stadium, in many ways, also signalled the arrival of Vardy.
He had contributed substantially to the securing of the Championship title in 2013/14, and just three games into the following season, having drawn with Arsenal and beaten Stoke City, Leicester's first home victory was a remarkable 5-3 triumph over Manchester United.
Twice trailing by two goals on Filbert Way, City's inspired second half comeback was completed by Vardy, netting his first Premier League goal, before Leonardo Ulloa added further gloss to the scoreline.
He had to wait until 21 March, 2015 for the next goal, but the following two strikes would both come in crucial away victories, against West Bromwich Albion and Burnley, which contributed to securing City's Premier League survival.
Having completed the great escape, Vardy and his team-mates were able to enjoy the final fixture of 2014/15, a 5-1 thrashing of Queens Park Rangers, which Vardy marked with his fifth goal of the campaign.
A month later, Vardy made his international debut, coming on a substitute in England's goalless draw with Ireland at Aviva Stadium. However, it was the striker's club career which really took off the following season.
In a truly remarkable campaign that will be forever remembered as one of the greatest in the Club's history, Leicester City, with pre-season title odds of 5000/1, were crowned Premier League champions.
From the Foxes' very first fixture of 2015/16, a 4-2 victory over Sunderland, who were the team City sealed their survival against in the previous campaign, Vardy was at his ferocious best.
Scoring on that day and away at Bournemouth in August, the start of a Premier League record 11-game goal streak, Vardy was fast becoming a talismanic figure for Leicester City.
Matching and then beating Ruud Van Nistelrooy's long-standing feat of scoring in 10 consecutive top flight matches was some achievement for a player who plied his trade in the National League just over three years prior.
Following the 1-1 home draw with Manchester United, during which Vardy secured the record and moved the Club to within goal difference of the league's summit, the England international scored his 15th goal of the season, against Chelsea, ensuring the Foxes would be top at Christmas.
He would go on to net a total of 24 league goals as he scooped the Premier League Player of the Season award and The Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year prize. Leicester claimed the top flight title for the very first-time, becoming just the sixth Club to have their name engraved on the Premier League trophy.
Memorable Vardy goals came in the 2-0 home victory over Liverpool in February 2016 - a sensational half-volley - and a brace against Everton on 7 May, 2016, when Leicester were officially crowned as champions in front of the Blue Army at King Power Stadium.
The season also marked Vardy's first international goal - a brilliant equalising flick in the 3-2 away victory against Germany, before also netting in a friendly with Holland.
Leicester's first foray into the UEFA Champions League came in 2016/17, with Vardy saving his best goalscoring form for the tournament's latter stages.
A crucial strike, away at Sevilla in the last 16 first leg, gave City the belief that they could go on and win the tie back at King Power Stadium, which they did, to set up a quarter-final with 2015/16 finalists, Atlético Madrid.
Another Vardy goal against the Spanish giants, this time in the return home leg, wasn't enough to progress into the semi-finals, though Leicester and Vardy had created more history. Never before had the Club reached the quarter-finals of a European competition.
Back in the league, Vardy continued to demonstrate his prowess in front of goal, scoring a hat-trick in the 4-2 victory over Manchester City, and finding the net twice in City's 3-1 win against Liverpool. Another 13 goals, despite Leicester's domestic struggles in 2016/17, underlined his importance to the team.
In 2017/18, Vardy brought up his 200th appearance for the Club and then scored his 50th Premier League goal in a 2-2 draw with Manchester United. Two goals against Tottenham Hotspur on the final day of the season, meanwhile, ensured Vardy had reached 20 Premier League goals for the second time in three years.
Over the course of a run of 10 goals in 11 league games between February and April 2019, Vardy hit two significant milestones, scoring his 100th Leicester goal in a 3-1 victory over Fulham and then his 100th league goal for the Football Club during a 3-0 home win against Arsenal.
The records continued to tumble in 2019/20, namely in the 9-0 thrashing of Southampton at St. Mary's Stadium in October 2019, during which City's No.9 scored a hat-trick, as the Foxes broke the record for the biggest-ever away win in the English top flight.
Vardy also had his eyes set on another coveted achievement - 100 goals in the Premier League. On 4 July, 2020, 77 minutes into a 3-0 home victory over Crystal Palace, the forward reached the target, becoming the first Leicester player to do so.
The season ended with yet another first as Vardy won the Premier League Golden Boot. At 33, he was the oldest player to receive the award, by scoring 23 goals across 2019/20.
Eleven league goals plundered from 16 games this term, including another hat-trick against Manchester City, are supported by five assists along the way.
And with a total of 114 Premier League goals in 227 appearances now in the bank, Vardy, who signed a new contract at the Club in August 2020, continues to terrify defences up and down the land.