Sammie Szmodics in the North West overturned Wout Faes’ early header, but a Jamie Vardy rocket gave the visitors the advantage again. The storied No. 9 has already scored 174 goals for the team. In the second half, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s deft chip and Kelechi Iheanacho’s successful penalty conversion secured City’s fourth straight league victory. This outcome widens the lead above hot Ipswich Town to two points at the top of the table.
Foxes supporters entered the stadium via Alan Shearer Way for the first match of the two former Premier League champions outside the top flight. For the event, 3,269 of them were housed in the Bryan Douglas Darwen End in Lancashire. With seven victories from their first eight Championship games, Enzo Maresca’s team has had the best start of any demoted team in history. However, due to the structure of the league calendar, there is no room for celebration. Even if the games are coming thick and fast, Saturday’s outcome gave City another path to the top of the table.
James Justin replaced the injured Callum Doyle in Maresca’s only substitution from Leicester’s 1-0 win over Bristol City in their previous EFL game. In contrast, there were nine changes from the starting XI that lost 3-1 to Liverpool in the Carabao Cup. Aynsley Pears in the Rovers goal was concerned by Stephy Mavididi’s first cross right away, and as a result, he deflected it for a quick Foxes corner. Abdul Fatawu crossed it with incredible perfection onto the waiting head of Faes after Dewsbury-Hall rolled it short to him. The player from Belgium, who stood tallest, nodded the ball back across goal and into the lower corner. This season, Leicester has a tendency to score first on the road.
However, the lead was only temporary. Hayden Carter anticipated Mads Hermansen’s quick pass out to Harry Winks and pushed the former Tottenham Hotspur player away from the ball. With time and space, it skidded off Ricardo Pereira’s extended toe and fell into Szmodics. Hermansen was displaced in front of the net when the Rovers forward, who was in fine form, glanced up and booted the ball into it. Blackburn recognized a chance to punish Leicester even more. While Dilan Markanday sent it directly at Hermansen from a distance, Andrew Moran half-volleyed over from a narrow angle. City’s answer was to attempt and control possession while patiently watching for a gap in Blackburn’s backline to open up.
Vardy was eager for another goal at Ewood after scoring the Club’s first league goal here 11 years prior. He chested a high ball down and hammered it toward goal from the left-most angle of the box, but it hit the crossbar. Dewsbury-Hall, in contrast, quickly interacted with Mavididi on the left channel before clearing the bar seconds later. In the 28th minute, Vardy did score his 159th league goal for Leicester City. The No. 9 sent a vicious left-footed shot into the roof of the net on Wilfred Ndidi’s wonderful cross-field assist. Time for yet another celebration for the Vardy photo album.
It was occasionally tremendously open, with control frequently swinging from one side to the other. One such incident involved Dewsbury-Hall, who broke away down the left and struck the sidenetting. At the break, Leicester was looking to maintain its 2-1 lead while attempting to increase it. Ndidi was only stopped by a last-ditch effort from Harry Pickering after Vardy’s drag-back had worn down the home team on minute 54. Shortly after, Pickering assisted Szmodics at the other end, but he was unable to keep the ball in the goal. With fifteen minutes remaining, Blackburn replied. Hermansen made a good stop on a Lewis Travis shot before Jannik Vestergaard stretched out a leg to deflect a Szmodics follow-up shot away from harm.
A worrying incident occurred midway through the half when Kasey McAteer, a substitute who has scored five goals so far this season, was forced to leave the field once more after pulling up while chasing the ball down the left. Maresca will probably give an update in the upcoming days.
Later, when Hayden Carter hauled Vestergaard to the ground, referee James Linington pointed to the spot, ending the game. Iheanacho, who had just taken over for Vardy, stepped up and confidently fired the ball past Leo Wahlstedt in front of the traveling supporters. On the 88th minute, the score was glossed over. Another second-half replacement, Yunus Akgün, threaded a superbly weighted through ball into Dewsbury-Hall, who hacked it over Wahlstedt while Wahlstedt only watched.
