FOXES ON TAIL OF REDS
Rodgers’ record-breakers are main threat to leaders
BRENDAN RODGERS turned to face the main stand at the final whistle and held up eight fingers.
He was gesturing to Leicester City’s hierarchy in the directors’ box after his team completed an eighth successive top-flight win for a new record.
But the number also signifies the gap between the secondplaced Foxes and unbeaten league leaders Liverpool.
And, as Gary Lineker tweeted, Liverpool had better “watch out” on this form.
Jurgen Klopp’s side visit Leicester on Boxing Day and Manchester City’s derby defeat on Saturday, combined with this win, means the Foxes are the league leaders’ biggest threat right now.
Little wonder that, with Arsenal sniffing around, Leicester pulled out all the stops last week to tie Rodgers to a new £40million contract until 2025.
Not only does Champions League qualification look increasingly likely, but Leicester’s title credentials simply cannot be dismissed.
The big clubs did that once to their cost in 2015-16, when Claudio Ranieri’s side refused to go away and Jamie Vardy’s goals never dried up.
Now Vardy is once again is terrorising the top flight and topping the scoring charts. His brace against Villa took his tally to 16 for the season.
He sprinted clear twice to finish well and make it eight successive matches on the scoresheet, as Kelechi Iheanacho and Jonny Evans also found the net in a ruthless and dominant display.
Villa should have opened the scoring as Jack Grealish released Matt Targett and Anwar El Ghazi side-footed his cross against the bar from eight yards out in the 11th minute.
Villa’s prospects were hit when the influential Tyrone Mings pulled up clutching his hamstring. The England defender struggled on and the team were made to pay moments later when Marvelous Nakamba’s daft sideways pass was intercepted by James Maddison.
He found Iheanacho who split the Villa defence with a fine pass for Vardy to run on to as Mings could only hobble back.
Vardy rounded keeper Tom Heaton and tapped in with his left foot at the second attempt in the 20th minute after an initial airshot while off balance. Mings was replaced by Bjorn Engels but Leicester still deservedly doubled their lead before the break.
Maddison’s low cross from the left picked out Iheanacho at the near post.
The Nigerian still had a lot to do but expertly steered in a first-time left-foot volley.
Villa gave themselves hope before the interval when skipper Grealish fired a right-foot shot in
off the post. But optimism was quickly punctured in the 49th minute when Evans rose to head in from Maddison’s corner
Leicester were not done there as Vardy got his second, racing on to Dennis Praet’s pass before burying a low right-foot finish.
Only Heaton then stood between Leicester and an even more emphatic win as he denied Caglar Soyuncu and then substitute Harvey Barnes late on with the Foxes amassing 23 shots.