Leicester 3 Everton 1
Continuing our bank holiday week end coverage, our match reporter resumes at the start of the second half with images of the celebrations added to the piece
Report by James Bandy
After the break, Kasper Schmeichel denied Oumar Niasse with an unorthodox header on the edge of the penalty area before stopping a Lukaku backheel. The Belgium striker was again denied by the Leicester goalkeeper, before Robles had to be alert to deny Fuchs his first goal of the season after being released by Mahrez.
Robles ws soon beaten, though, as Pennington brought down Vardy with a clumsy challenge. The Everton defender was lucky not to see red, having been given a yellow in the first half for hauling down Mahrez in full flight. Vardy made no mistake from the spot, drilling his spot kick hard to the keeper’s right for his 24th goal of the season.
The England striker had a chance to score his 25th seven minutes later. Darron Gibson upended Jeffrey Schlupp as he raced into the area, but with the chance to complete his first hat-trick in professional football and bring him level at the top of the Premier League scoring charts with Harry Kane, Vardy got his effort all wrong, blazing the ball high over Robles’ crossbar.
Leonardo Ulloa and King flicked headers wide towards the end, with Oviedo denying Vardy the hat-trick he craved, before Mirallas grabbed a late consolation which was far better than the overall Toffees performance. Marcin Wasilewski was twice beaten by a tidy Kevin Mirallas sidestep, with the Belgium international cutting inside Kante to score.
The strike visibly annoyed Schmeichel and his defensive colleagues, who wanted a clean sheet, but it epitomised their professionalism – and possibly the fact the Denmark No.1 had one eye on the Golden Glove award after keeping 15 clean sheets so far this season.
But the disappointment was short-lived, as the final whistle blew and Morgan lifted the Premier League trophy amid incredible scenes inside the stadium. It capped what is without doubt the greatest day in the club’s 132-year history. The players have achieved immortality, and it’s humbling that us fans can say we were alive to witness it. Just don’t make us wait another 132 years for the next one, eh?
Leicester: Schmeichel; Simpson, Wasilewski, Morgan, Fuchs; Mahrez, King, Kante, Albrighton; Okazaki, Vardy. Subs: Ulloa, (62, for Okazaki), Schlupp (67, for Albrighton), Gray (91, for Mahrez), Amartey, Chilwell, Schwarzer, Inler.
Everton: Robles; Oviedo, Pennington, Stones, Baines; Lennon, Barkley, McCarthy, Cleverley; Niasse, Lukaku. Subs: Mirallas (63, for Niasse), Gibson, (63, for Cleverley), Osman (81, for Barkley), Besic, Howard, Connolly, Dowell.
Referee: Andre Marriner Attendance: 32,140.
The views expressed in this report are the opinions of the Trust member nominated to file the report only and do not represent the views of the Foxes Trust organisation