Jamie Vardy had the strangest game in a long time as his brace and VAR helped Leicester City hold Burnley to a 2-2 draw in the Premier League.
At a certain point, it did look like Burnley might get themselves their first win of the season, only for Jamie Vardy to spoil the Clarets’ party. The forward had an indifferent game, as he scored a brace and an own goal during the match, which earned Leicester City a point rather than all three.
After early Burnley pressure on the Foxes defence, Vardy was extremely unfortunate to open the scoring at the wrong end. The striker made amends in the 37th minute with a deserved equaliser only for the Clarets’ new signing Maxwel Cornet to restore their lead three minutes later.
As the game dragged on, some ingredients pointed towards a late drama in the game, and Vardy popped up to find the net late in the game to equalise again. VAR denied Burnley’s Chris Wood a last-second strike as the two teams ended up sharing the spoils.
During the game, Leicester did have other players who performed well, such as Harvey Barnes and Youri Tielemans, but Vardy’s show on both ends of the field made him the crucial cog in the match. Here’s how Leicester City players rated against Burnley in their 2-2 draw.
Kasper Schmeichel – 4.5/10
It was a tough night for the Danish keeper, as he found it difficult to take control of his area throughout the game. Schmeichel’s kicking was off the radar on the evening and his terrible handling made everyone watching pretty nervous.
Ricardo Pereira – 5/10
Pereira was not at his best defensively or attack wise, as the full-back struggled to find any rhythm to his game. While there were a few good moments with his attacking play, the Portuguese allowed way too much space for Cornet to operate on his side. He was rightly substituted at half-time.
Caglar Soyuncu – 5/10
Soyuncu continued his dreadful form this season with yet another shaky performance at the back. The Leicester backline has been awful since the start of the campaign, and much of the blame for such displays should be reserved for the Turkey international.
Jannik Vestergaard – 4/10
Brendan Rodgers is certainly missing the likes of Wesley Fofana and Jonny Evans in his backline, as things have looked bad since Vestergaard’s arrival. Another bad performance from the big defender, who has looked miles apart from his Southampton form.
Ryan Bertrand – 6/10
Compared to other Foxes’ defenders, Bertrand is proving to be a bright spot. The former Saints man was probably their best defender in this game, as he looked solid in all aspects.
Youri Tielemans – 7/10
With an ineffective defence behind him, Tielemans gave his team some level of control from midfield. Became the centre of everything good the team did as some of his passes looked a class apart.
Boubakary Soumare – 6/10
Rodgers started with a midfield three to add more cover to his flailing defence in this game, and Soumare was at the heart of the action. He slotted in well alongside Tielemans and Ndidi to play his part well.
Wilfried Ndidi – 5.5/10
It was a tale of two halves for Ndidi, whose failure to protect the backline in the first period resulted in all sorts of problems, while his improved performance in the second period made the Foxes look more secure.
Ademola Lookman – 5.5/10
Lookman is still getting the grips in attack this season. A decent performance against Burnley, there’s still plenty of work to be done, especially on his decision-making in the final third.
Jamie Vardy – 7/10
Vardy wrote the narrative for this game with an own-goal, brace and missing two chances. After a torrid opening thirty minutes, the striker made the match all about himself from there on and succeeded. His goals proved crucial for Leicester as they avoided a defeat.
Harvey Barnes – 6.5/10
A constant threat for Clarets defenders, Barnes could have had a more lethal presence had the service from his teammates been on the mark. Still growing rapidly as an attacking spearhead in this team and will be crucial to Leicester’s chances this season.
Substitutes
Timothy Castagne – 6/10
Castagne replaced Perreira at half-time and immediately tightened the backline after a bad first period for the defence.
Kelechi Iheanacho – 6.5/10
Iheanacho was the crucial substitution Rodgers had to make. Sparked the Foxes attack to life and set up Vardy’s second.
James Maddison – N/A
On for Lookman in the 78th minute. Did not do much of note.
