Leicester City vs Bournemouth. Premier League.
The King Power StadiumAttendance31,613.
Report and highlights as Leicester defeat Bournemouth thanks to Vardy double
Saturday 31 August 2019 22:20, UK
Leicester City proved too clinical for Bournemouth as Brendan Rodgers' side cruised to a 3-1 win at the King Power Stadium.
The game kicked off in frenetic fashion with both sides taking turns to counter, but Leicester struck first after Ben Chilwell hit a long ball behind Bournemouth's defence, with Jamie Vardy latching onto it to lob Aaron Ramsdale.
Bournemouth piled forward at the restart and Ryan Fraser picked out Callum Wilson with the England international hitting a delicious chip over Kasper Schmeichel's outstretched leg to level the scores.
But the Foxes continued to cause all manner of problems for Eddie Howe's defence, with Youri Tielemans tapping his side ahead before the interval and Vardy netting his second of the game midway through the second half.
Leicester had only conjured six attempts on target from their opening three fixtures - but had already surpassed that figure for attempts in just 45 minutes against Eddie Howe's side, which was nearly matched by the opposition.
Vardy was relentless for the full 90 minutes but his 12th-minute opener epitomised the style of play that saw Leicester lift the Premier League trophy only three years ago, one long ball to chase and finish.
But Bournemouth struggled to isolate the danger, with Chilwell, Tielemans, Marc Albrighton and Wilfred Ndidi each carving out two opportunities for team-mates, and Vardy joining in to assist Leicester's second.
The game could have panned out differently if Tielemans had received a red card for a wild challenge after the break, which appeared to buckle Callum Wilson's ankle - but VAR adjudged 'no red card' after several replays.
Bournemouth stopper Ramsdale was almost caught out by Vardy's relentless press, intercepting the young 'keeper's distribution on two occasions.
Indeed, it was Vardy who also harassed Steve Cook before threading a pass across the six-yard box for Tielemans to tap the Foxes ahead, before the Belgian repaid the assist to seal the win midway through the second half.
Howe handed Harry Wilson a start after scoring his second successive stunner from range against Manchester City last week, but the Liverpool loanee struggled to sparkle at the King Power and was subbed off with 30 minutes to go.
Leicester's Brendan Rodgers
"I was so pleased with the fight, the mentality today was amazing and we scored three goals - and had opportunities to score more in the second half.
"[Jamie Vardy] played all midweek as well, he's so strong and fit. He looks after his body. Genetically, he's blessed. He's faster now than he was four years ago!"
Bournemouth's Eddie Howe
"Ultimately, the goals we conceded today, well, I'm just trying to find my words correctly... they were self-inflicted. We know Jamie Vardy can get in behind. We didn't deal with it well enough for the first one.
"Second one, we're disappointed with, and the third one came from our giveaway. So all three goals we contributed towards."
Jamie Vardy
Bournemouth simply could not cope with Vardy, who completed a match-topping 16 sprints and 33.39 km/h stop speed, scored two of his three shots on target and was instrumental in Leicester's second goal.
Leicester face Manchester United at Old Trafford next Saturday, while Bournemouth are under the Sky cameras on Sunday to host Everton at the Vitality.
