Leicester edged a pulsating and thrilling contest at the King Power Stadium this afternoon in their final game of 2013. Some excellent finishing, as well as plenty of kamikaze defending made for a fabulous spectacle, if not a brilliant advert for the quality of Championship football. Not many games boast a scoreline of 3-3 at half time. Danny Drinkwater gave Leicester the lead in the 5th minute, firing an excellent shot into the bottom corner from outside the box. Just ten minutes later, Brazilian midfielder Moritz poked home a left footed shot from near the penalty spot to equalise. Former Leicester striker Jermaine Beckford gave the visitors the lead in the 20th minute, firing clinically into the bottom corner from deep in the penalty area.
To Leicester's credit, they responded well and man of the match Lloyd Dyer delivered an outstanding cross to pick out Anthony Knockaert at the far post, the diminutive Frenchman scoring a rare headed goal to make the score 2-2 with just 37 minutes on the clock. Again, Bolton bounced back within minutes, Moritz scoring his second of the game and it looked as though the visitors would go into the break ahead in the game. Crucially, Leicester found a way to draw level again before half-time, Paul Konchesky's shot deflecting past the hapless Lonergan. After the interval, Leicester began to exercise more control over the game and seemed tor get stronger as the game went on. In the 65th minute, Anthony Knockaert's free-kick struck the bar and Moore should have put the rebound away. City were dominating at that stage and it seemed like a matter of time before they took the lead again. In fairness to Kasper Schmeichel, the Dane made a superb save in the 70th minute to keep the scores level and deny Davies - it was Bolton's best chance of the half.
In the 73rd minute, Lonergan brought down Vardy in the box, only for David Nugent to miss the resulting penalty. Again, City persevered and just one minute later, Lloyd Dyer flew down the left flank, cut into the box and fired a superb finish into the bottom corner of the net - it was an outstanding individual goal. There was still time for substitute Gary Taylor-Fletcher to cap off an incredible match with his first goal for the club. Moore hit a clearance to the edge of Bolton's box, King flicked it on and Taylor-Fletcher fired home in the 89th minute. Manager Nigel Pearson may have some concerns about his team's defending today but he will be delighted with how many chances his side put away, as well as the fact that so many different players found the back of the net. With Vardy suspended on New Year's Day after picking up his fifth booking of the season this afternoon, someone else is going to get their opportunity in the starting line-up.
So, the Foxes finish the year top of the Championship table, with 22 wins from their 44 league games this calendar year. In the context of this season, City sit on 48 points from 23 games, 4 clear of their closest rivals at the halfway stage. At this point last season, Cardiff City had 47 points from 23 games and went on to win the league by 8 points. January will be critical for City, both in terms of maintaining their form but also in keeping the squad together during the transfer window. If rumours are to be believed, Leicester may even strengthen their squad, with Algerian midfielder Mahrez set to join in a three and a half year deal. After last season's collapse in form throughout February and March, the arrival of a new player or two could give the squad a crucial impetus. Watch this space.
No comments:
Post a Comment