Leicester City returned to Premier League action and moved up to second in the table with a brilliant victory away to Aston Villa.
As the commentators and pundits liked to remind us, Jack Grealish was absent for the hosts which would have definitely given the Foxes a boost before kick-off. It appeared that way as they came flying out the blocks and took a deserved lead as Maddison picked it up 20 yards out and found the bottom corner with a cute effort.
A couple of minutes later Harvey Barnes reacted quickest to a rebound effort and buried the chance to score his 13th goal of the season to further stake his claim to go to the Euros to the watching Gareth Southgate.
Traore got one back at the start of the second half, but Brendan Rodgers and his side saw the game out with three defensive midfielders on at the end! Both halves were the polar opposites of each other, one filled with quality; the other with determination, so with that in mind who took his opportunity and who gets better every game.
Kasper Schmeichel- 5
As much as the stats may tell you that Villa dominated in the second half, Kasper’s highlights will tell you a different story. Had nothing to do, only note was some poor passing.
Timothy Castagne- 7
This was as good as I have seen him play for Leicester City. The Belgian made yet another return from injury and slotted in at right back brilliantly. His defending was superb, never going to ground just dominating the one on ones. Going forward it was again superb. His forward passes whilst in his own half were why City were so good in that first period, and his marauding runs forward gave his side a great outlet.
Jonny Evans- 7
Every time I do a player ratings report; I never have anything to write about the Northern Irishman due to how quiet he was. Everything he did was simple, whether it was a tackle to relieve pressure or a simple forward pass. Brilliant.
Caglar Soyuncu- 7
Since his return to the side, the Foxes have played six games and only conceded two goals. He has been so impressive since his return, again another great display keeping Watkins relatively quiet.
Luke Thomas- 8
The academy graduate probably had his best performance since his debut. Two big chances for the home side were kept out thanks to him. One was a brilliant block and the other was a block on Traore to stop him having a free header. His attacking play was direct and subtle but given he has had defensive frailties in the past, it was a great display from the 19-year-old.
Youri Tielemans- 8
The Belgian epitomised the match as a whole. In the first half he played killer forward passes which led to the two Leicester goals and set the tempo for his side, and in the second half he was this tenacious midfielder. He gets better every time you watch.
Wilfred Ndidi- 7
A quieter game for the best holding midfielder in the world, but an effective one, nonetheless. Always got about and was always available on the ball.
Ricardo Pereira- 6
Every Foxes fans dreams were realised when they saw Ricardo starting on the right wing. I think he was playing there on merit rather than to deal with Grealish, and he played well in the first half. Kept finding himself in the inside right position, and had a couple of efforts early on, the second period was a quieter one for him given that he was helping out Castagne at the back. The right back was Leicester’s best attacker last season and when he is at full fitness, I’m sure we’ll see him at his best soon.
James Maddison- 6
A great goal, one that surely has to get Southgate’s attention. His overall game was nice, just that killer pass never went his way today, and hopefully his injury is only a little knock. But it’s now 21 goal contributions this season, which as you’ll see compares to the best English players this season.
Harvey Barnes- 8 MOTM
Here are the goal contributions from every English wide player this season
Harvey Barnes– 17 in 33 games
Bukayo Saka- 11 in 29 games
Jaden Sancho- 25 in 29 games
Raheem Sterling- 22 in 32 games
Phil Foden- 17 in 31 games
Jack Grealish- 19 in 23 games
Marcus Rashford- 27 in 38 games
As you can see Barnes is putting numbers up that compare with the supposed ‘best’ in his position. It made me laugh when the Sky pundits were asked if he should go to the Euro’s and no one said yes and said other players are ahead, and from where I’m sitting, I can’t see why.
Leicester’s best player today, direct, quick, clinical, amazing.
Jamie Vardy- 6
Again, another quiet game, but it was his shot that rebounded for Barnes to score, apart from that he had nothing to do.
Substitutes:
Daniel Amartey, Papy Mendy, Hamza Choudhury- 6
Mendy definitely had an influence on the game, he slowed the game down and protected Leicester City’s lead. As for the others it was just about wasting time.