To celebrate the year, LCFC.com looks back on some of those achievements from a year which started and ended with top-flight success for the Foxes…
Newcastle United 1 Leicester City 2
Sunday 3 January
St. James’ Park
Premier League
Leicester began 2021 by travelling to St. James’ Park for a meeting with Newcastle United, then managed by Steve Bruce. After a goalless first half on Tyneside, the game sprung into life just 10 minutes into the second half as James Maddison struck his fourth goal of the season in some style, powering in Jamie Vardy’s cutback before a darts-inspired celebration on the day of the World Darts Championship Final.
Youri Tielemans then doubled the advantage with a curled effort, set up by Marc Albrighton, and looked to have made the game safe with under 20 minutes to play. Andy Carroll had other ideas and City’s clean sheet was wiped out by the former England international’s stunning volley late on.
But Brendan Rodgers’ men were able to hold out and seal the perfect start to the New Year, moving up to the third in the standings and one point off top spot in the process. It was also a record seventh win for the Foxes in nine away games during 2020/21.
Leicester City 2 Chelsea 0
Tuesday 19 January
King Power Stadium
Premier League
One of the four meetings with Chelsea in 2021 will never be forgotten by any Foxes supporter, but before that historic day in May when City lifted the FA Cup trophy for the first time in the Club’s history, another clash with the Blues ended in an impressive league triumph for the home side.
Both goals were scored in the first half and Leicester got up and running inside the opening six minutes when an unlikely goalscorer – Wilfred Ndidi – popped up with his first and only goal of the campaign. The Nigerian’s sweeping drive clipped the post on its way into the net and set Rodgers' side on the way to victory.
A smart half-volley finish from Maddison, his third goal in as many games, secured the result that took City to the top of the Premier League table at the halfway stage of the season, while it proved to be Frank Lampard’s final game in charge of Chelsea. When the teams met again four months later, there would be a new man in the dugout for the opposition.
Leicester City 3 Liverpool 1
Saturday 13 February
King Power Stadium
Premier League
Another Premier League champion was put to the sword the following month, owing to a whirlwind seven minutes in which the game totally turned on its head.
With Jürgen Klopp’s title holders fighting to stay in the top four, the Foxes knew they would face a stern test on Filbert Way. And they’d have to do it without the Blue Army present as COVID-19 restrictions meant fixtures continued to be played behind closed doors.
So it proved as Mohamed Salah edged the Reds ahead on 67 minutes after a moment of magic from Roberto Firmino to set up the Egyptian forward. However, 11 minutes later, Leicester were level. A stunning Maddison free-kick began the comeback, his eighth goal involvement in nine games, with VAR eventually ruling that the goal should stand after initially being chalked off for offside.
The hosts now had Liverpool on the ropes, and it took just another three minutes to reverse the scoreline. After Alisson and Ozan Kabak collided, Vardy was not going to pass up the opportunity to score in an empty net and take his tally against the Reds to eight goals.
The visitors’ misery was soon compounded, too. Harvey Barnes took control of Ndidi’s pass and stroked the ball into the far corner to, at that stage of the season, have more goals than any other English midfielder (eight).
Leicester City 5 Sheffield United 0
Sunday 14 March
King Power Stadium
Premier League
A favourable scoreline was achieved at King Power Stadium as Leicester City equalled their biggest-ever home win in the Premier League by putting five past Sheffield United. The Blades had appointed Paul Heckingbottom as interim head coach but there was no new manager bounce for the away side.
Kelechi Iheanacho kicked off the scoring shortly before the interval, scoring for the third game in a row and bagged his first Premier League hat-trick, taking his tally to seven goals in his last eight games in all competitions.
Ayoze Pérez was also on the scoresheet and an Ethan Ampadu own goal, initially claimed by Vardy, added further gloss to the scoreline, also ensuring the 5-0 victory against Newcastle in 2019 was matched.
Leicester City 4 Manchester United 2
Saturday 16 October
King Power Stadium
Premier League
Keen to return to winning ways in the Premier League after a winless September, Leicester took on a Manchester United side with a 29-game unbeaten run on the road. That record was soon wiped out by the Foxes, however, who were back on level terms after Mason Greenwood broke the deadlock, courtesy of an audacious finish from Belgium midfielder Tielemans.
The rest of the drama was saved for the final 12 minutes. Çağlar Söyüncü gave Leicester the advantage for the first time in the game, but it was a lead they held for just four minutes.
Once Marcus Rashford had restored parity, it looked to be the Red Devils who had the momentum and were most likely to go on and win the game, but Vardy’s outrageous goal, straight from kick-off, put pay to that notion.
Patson Daka then came off the bench to seal the points in stoppage time with his first Premier League goal, a sign of things to come from the Zambia striker.
Leicester City 1 Liverpool 0
Tuesday 28 December
King Power Stadium
Premier League
Liverpool would be defeated at home again in the final fixture of 2021, ending the year in style thanks to substitute Ademola Lookman’s fine finish, though that did not tell the full story of the game.
Kasper Schmeichel, later named Man of the Match, produced a string of spectacular saves, not least from 12 yards when Salah stepped up to try and give the away side an early lead from the spot.
That penalty stop gave the crowd a huge lift and backed up by some outstanding defending from City’s makeshift backline, they were able to become the first team so far this season to keep a clean sheet against the Reds and claim a morale-boosting victory.
Rodgers described it as a ‘heroic’ performance from the players, who had faced Manchester City just 48 hours earlier and then overcame a rested Liverpool side who had not played since the two teams met in the Carabao Cup six days earlier.