Ranieri blames handball as Leicester lose to Burnley
Sam Vokes grabbed a late winner as Burnley piled more pressure on struggling Premier League champions Leicester City on Tuesday.
With the match seemingly heading for a goalless draw, Vokes hooked home from close range off a headed knockdown from Michael Keane to secure Burnley’s fifth successive home win.
The ball hit the Wales striker’s hand before he scored but referee Mike Dean dismissed Leicester’s appeals. “It was a handball. It was for everybody, for the television, but not for the referee,” Leicester manager Claudio Ranieri told the BBC.
“The referee is the boss. He didn’t see it and we lost - in this moment everything is wrong against us, including the decision of the referee.”
Burnley have taken all but one of their 29 points at Turf Moor this season while Leicester, with 21 points from 23 games, have yet to win away from home in the current campaign and are now perilously close to the drop zone.
The Foxes are 16th, level on points with Swansea below them and just two clear of the relegation places.
They now have the worst record after 23 games of any reigning top-flight champions and Tuesday’s defeat was the first time they had suffered three successive Premier League losses under Ranieri.
Leicester have not won away since they beat Sunderland 2-0 at the Stadium of Light in April 2016, when they were well on their way to a fairytale title.
Meanwhile, struggling champions Leicester City have signed Mali centre back Molla Wague on loan from Udinese until the end of the Premier League season.
Leicester said that Wague, who played in this month’s African Nations Cup against Leicester’s Ghanaian midfielder Daniel Amartey, was their second signing of the transfer window that closes on Tuesday.
The club have an option to buy the player, whose move is subject to international clearance, from his parent club Granada at the end of the season.
“I’m delighted to be at Leicester City and I can’t wait to get started. It’s a wonderful club and I’m excited to have the chance to show what I can do in the Premier League with the champions,” the French-born player told the club website.
Wague, a former French youth international, has been on loan at Udinese since 2014, making 37 appearances for the Serie A club. He also played alongside former Leicester player N’Golo Kante at Caen earlier in his career. — Agencies