Landmark Vardy Brace Helps City Defeat Norwich
Following Sunday's 2-1 defeat by Everton, manager Brendan Rodgers made five changes to the starting XI. In came James Justin, Maddison, Ademola Lookman, Harvey Barnes and Vardy, as City's entire attack was freshened up for their second Premier League match in four days.
Afternoon showers turned to calm evening sun in Leicester, where the Foxes' aim for the remaining four matches would be to improve on their Premier League position. Their intent was evident from the first minute as Barnes tore down the left wing and looked to locate Vardy, however his pass into the six-yard box was cut out.
A rasping volley from Youri Tielemans - the scorer of some stunning goals this term - flew over Angus Gunn's crossbar on eight minutes. The Belgium international turned provider 60 seconds later, whipping a delightful cross into Vardy, but the danger was cleared once again.
Gunn then performed a trio of big saves in the space of a minute, first preventing Maddison and then Vardy on the rebound, while the No.10, picked out by Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall unleashed a powerful strike in the next attack, however it was plucked out of the top corner by Norwich's 'keeper.
City were committing men forward, but that meant Norwich could afford to focus their energy on the counter-attack when in possession of the ball. That's exactly what happened on the quarter-hour mark, but captain Kasper Schmeichel made two excellent stops to bravely deny the Canaries. The Denmark star then used his feet to turn away a low drive from Dimitris Giannoulis.
The men in blue were eager to restore their own pressure, with Lookman seeing his shot blocked by the body of Grant Hanley. Tielemans tried to get to the loose ball, and did, but another Norwich man stood in the way. Superb footwork from Dewsbury-Hall followed on 28 minutes, as he weaved his way past Billy Gilmour and teed up Lookman - Gunn was there again, though, stretching with his left leg to keep the Nigeria winger out.
Jonny Evans caused Norwich trouble from a corner on 35 minutes, but after he hooked the ball back across goal, Daniel Amartey was beaten to it. Justin had to intervene on the counter-attack after the visitors had cleared their lines, expertly intercepting Max Aarons before he could add substance to the breakaway.
A chipped attempt from Vardy into arms of Gunn came on 42 minutes, while Pukki struck Schmeichel's left-hand upright in time added on. An opening 45 minutes in which both teams had chances came to a close.
A half-time change from Rodgers meant Papy Mendy would replace Lookman for the second half. Leicester emerged the brighter of the two sides after the interval, with Barnes denied only by a block. Hanley then managed to head away a snapshot Vardy effort five minutes in.
Leicester's surge continued and the goal arrived soon after. It was that man Vardy who sprung the offside trap and collected a Barnes pass before his shot deflected off Hanley and looped over Gunn for 1-0. Although it wasn't the prettiest of goals, it proved to be a big boost for him and his City team-mates - his first goal since March.
Soon came a second, and a landmark strike for the No.9. Justin recovered possession and found Barnes, who slipped in Vardy and the Club's all-time leading Premier League goalscorer did the rest - the 35 year-old's 150th league goal in Leicester colours since joining 10 years ago this month.
Vardy came perilously close to a hat-trick on 65 minutes, but his deft finish flew off target. A third goal of the night did arrive in the 70th minute, though, with Maddison lashing home the loose ball from around 12 yards out after Gunn had parried Dewsbury-Hall's cross into the midfielder's path. That marked his 15th effort of the season across all formats, and one that concluded goalscoring matters in a solid victory on Filbert Way.
Major moment
Having missed significant spells of the season through injury, Jamie Vardy marked his return with a brace - the first of which came nine minutes into the second half to open the scoring. That goal laid the foundations for City's convincing win, with Vardy adding another before James Maddison converted from close range.
Who impressed?
Positioned in the pressbox at King Power Stadium, LCFC Radio co-commentator Gerry Taggart said: "Both ‘keepers were in tip-top form, and if it had stayed goalless, I’d have picked either Kasper Schmeichel or Timothy Castagne. I thought Castagne was a shining light in the first half down that right-hand side and put some quality balls into the box. It was unfortunate that no one was able to get on the end of it. In the end, it’s all about winning games of football, and the only way to win a game of football is by scoring goals. It’s that man again, Jamie Vardy, who, let’s face it, made the difference on the night. It has to be the one and only Jamie Vardy."
Where do we stand?
After their 35th Premier League outing in 2021/22, City are now 10th in the division.
Coming up...
Leicester City's antepenultimate Premier League match of the season comes on Sunday when they travel to Vicarage Road to face Watford (2pm kick-off). Their final week of the campaign then sees them face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Thursday 19 May (8pm kick-off) and then Southampton on Filbert Way on Sunday 22 May (4pm kick-off).
The details...
All times BST.