Dominant Foxes Put Four Past Fleetwood
Stunners from Christian Fuchs and Rachid Ghezzal, on his full debut, fell either side of well-taken efforts from Vicente Iborra and Kelechi Iheanacho on a comfortable night for the Foxes.
City boss Claude Puel elected to make eight changes from Saturday’s 2-1 win at Southampton, with Danny Ward and Ghezzal handed maiden starts for the Club.
The visitors from Sky Bet League 1 started in industrious fashion, forcing an early corner and Ward was called upon to make a smart stop to deny Harrison Biggins from 20 yards out.
However, Leicester’s supremacy manifested itself after just eight minutes as Fuchs, starting his first fixture of the season, hit a brilliant half-volley into the far corner.
It fell perfectly for the Austrian on the angle of the 18-yard box to fire it past Paul Jones in the Fleetwood net, setting City up nicely to express themselves in the final third.
Leicester’s football intelligence was on show for everybody to see as Puel’s men passed the ball assuredly with Adrien Silva and Marc Albrighton particularly impressing in midfield.
With six minutes until the interval, Fuchs continued to excel with an inch-perfect cross for Iborra, who duly obliged to nod it beyond Jones and double City’s lead.
Within seconds of the restart, the Foxes made it three. Albrighton’s lofted pass over the visiting backline landed at Iheanacho’s feet and the Nigerian slotted it into the bottom corner.
Ghezzal, meanwhile, was earning plaudits with an enterprising brand of football on the flanks and his reward came in the 71st minute with a moment of individual brilliance.
The Algerian cut inside his man on the right, played a smart one-two with Silva, before curling it into the very top corner to round off a hugely satisfying evening for Puel’s dominant hosts.
Major moment
While the result was already settled, Claude Puel will have been thrilled to see Rachid Ghezzal open his account for the Foxes with a magnificent maiden strike.
The 26-year-old former Monaco winger was in fine form on his first start for the hosts – and his goal was a fitting reward for an eye-catching performance.
Who impressed?
City left back Christian Fuchs was an intrepid presence on the left channel, scoring a wonderful opener for his side before laying it up for Vicente Iborra before the break.
The 32-year-old has waited for his chance to shine this season with Ben Chilwell being preferred in their mutual position in defence, but this outing was a reminder of his talents.
Where do we stand?
Leicester are safely into the Third Round draw, which takes place on Thursday evening from 7pm BST. To find out who City will face, check the Club’s official social media channels.
Coming up…
Premier League pace-setters Liverpool come to King Power Stadium on Saturday for a 12:30pm BST kick-off before the top flight takes a break for international football.