5 October 2024
Leicester City 1 Bournemouth 0
Steve Cooper’s side needed the King Power Stadium crowd to be their twelfth man more than ever. As they welcomed Bournemouth, they were craving their first win of the season. The longer the search continued, the more difficult Premier League safety seems. Newly promoted teams need to turn their own ground into a fortress, the manager desperately needed victory to stop the vultures circling.
The Cherries came into this game full of confidence. As a result, they took the game to The Foxes. As a free kick was swung in from out wide, Evanilson flicked it on with a header to find Senesi at the back post completely unmarked. Sadly for Iraola’s side he sent it wide of the goal, although the replay clearly showed he would have been offside.
Premier League sides who loan fringe players out often see them get little game time. Given Leicester’s lack of transfer activity, Brighton’s move to send Buonanotte to the King Power Stadium, was a touch of genius. He is flourishing with the amount of game time he is getting and is starring in every game Steve Cooper’s side play.
He made a bursting run through the middle and fired a shot off from outside the box. Kepa palmed the effort into the air and managed to collect it at the second time of asking. A statement of intent from the hosts. This match suggested it would be an open game with both sides far better going forward than they are at defending.
The Argentinian youngster then collected a throw-in inside the penalty area. He skipped past the defender onto his left foot and drilled a shot past The Cherries’ keeper to give the hosts the lead. The stadium erupted as the tricky midfielder wheeled away in celebration. His form could be the difference between The Foxes being a Premier League side next season or not.
Cooper’s side should have doubled their lead when Buonanotte threaded a ball through the defence for Vardy. He only had Kepa to beat but could not find the clinical finish we are so used to seeing from the striker. Despite his maturing years, Leicester’s front man looks more than at home in the top-flight, creating problems for defenders with his runs into the channels still.
Bournemouth struggled to create much in the way of chances in the first half. Iraola was seeing a real different side to his team who had been creating chances at will so far this season. Some inspiring words were needed from the Spaniard during the interval to spark his side into life. This was a fixture they would have earmarked for three points before the kick-off.
Whatever he said seemed to do the trick as they piled the pressure on from the restart. As a free kick was curled into the box, Zabarnyi had a free header but sadly for the visitors it struck the outside of the post and went wide. It showed how easily they could carve the Leicester defence open when the supply had enough quality.
Christie was the next player to have a sight of goal as a stray pass from the hosts gifted them the ball. He tried to place it in the bottom corner but Hermansen got down well to make the save and, more importantly, steer it well clear of the goal. Leicester’s keeper has been in fine form this season and would take some beating.
Iraola’s side were coming forward in seemingly one-way traffic after the break. Sinisterra left Justin for dead with some neat skill but the full-back chopped him down. He received a yellow card for his troubles but more worryingly, it gave The Cherries a free kick in a dangerous position. Cooper’s side were struggling to deal with the pressure from the visitors.
Cook sent a teasing inswinging ball in which beat everyone, including the Leicester keeper, and ended up in the back of the net. However, the celebrations were short-lived as Evanilson was adjudged to have been in an offside position and did try to flick the ball on despite not getting a touch. You could argue his attempt was in the eyeline of the keeper, affecting his reactions.
Sinisterra was causing all sorts of problems for Justin, who was walking a yellow card tightrope now. He sat an inviting cross into the box but Ouattara headed against the crossbar from just three yards out. It was a massive chance wasted for the visitors. The home fans celebrated the miss like they had scored themselves as they edged towards their first win of the season.
Bournemouth were not finished yet however. Brooks swung a cross into the box and their players were queueing up to be on the end of it. It dropped to Unal but he volleyed over the crossbar. Iraola will be wondering how his side came away from this game with nothing to show for their endeavours.
Leicester City got their first win of the Premier League campaign, much to the delight of The Foxes’ fans. It moved them up to fifteenth in the table and three points ahead of the bottom three. If they are to ensure they stay in this league, they will need to wrap Buonanotte in cotton wool between fixtures. Steve Cooper seemed a relieved man at the final whistle.
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