■ VARDY TO THE RESCUE IN PORTUGAL
SUPERSUB JAMIE EARNS CITY A DRAW IN EUROPA LEAGUE TIE
JAMIE Vardy’s last-gasp equaliser sealed Leicester City’s place in the knockout stages of the Europa League in a highly-entertaining 3-3 draw at Braga.
City came from behind on three occasions to earn a point in Portugal, substitute Vardy popping up at the back post to score the vital goal in the 95th minute.
City looked to have thrown away a result when Fransergio struck on the break for the hosts in the final minute of regular time, but they dug deep to level proceedings again, having done so twice before through academy graduates Harvey Barnes and Luke Thomas, the latter scoring his first goal for the club.
Barnes finished his fourth of the season five minutes after Braga took an early lead in a first half they dominated.
With Paulinho putting the Portuguese outfit ahead at the break, Rodgers brought on his big-hitters, with Youri Tielemans and James Maddison also introduced, Maddison setting up Luke Thomas’s goal in the 79th minute.
Then came the flurry of activity in added time as Braga thought they had clinched victory – before Vardy responded.
City’s record of three wins from three Europa League matches before heading to Braga had given them leeway to switch things around.
With an eye on the busy December schedule around the corner, Brendan Rodgers made five changes from the side that lost to Liverpool.
Tielemans, Papy Mendy and Wesley Fofana were handed rare rests, with Maddison and Vardy dropping out of the attack.
They did not need to match their 4-0 win over Braga from earlier in the month either, with a draw potentially sending them through to the knockout stages if AEK Athens failed to beat Zorya Luhansk in the group’s other game.
Not that the fixture at the King Power Stadium was an indication earning a point would be simple.
As far as the Portuguese side are concerned, that result was an outlier.
It was their only defeat of their previous nine games, having won the other eight, with Carlos Carvalhal’s side sitting second in the Primeira Liga.
It was the hosts who were the better side in the first half, with City, as they were at Liverpool, looking a shell of themselves.
Braga needed four minutes to open the scoring.
Carving City apart between the wider centre-backs and wingbacks was a regular move for the Portuguese outfit and a ball in behind Thomas saw the ball fall to Iuri Medeiros in the box.
The first shot was blocked by James Justin, the second by Thomas, but then it fell to Al Musrati 25 yards out and, with a firsttime strike, he drilled it into the corner.
City were only behind for five minutes, though.
They were at their most threatening when pressing Braga, the hosts shaky under pressure at the back.
Al Musrati gave the ball straight to Iheanacho and he skipped around a couple of challenges before Andre Castro got a foot in.
The ball bounced kindly to Barnes, who finished first time into the roof of the net with his weaker left foot.
Midway through the half, City were cut open again, though this time with some sublime onetouch football.
Eventually, Ricardo Horta was slipped through, and he rounded Kasper Schmeichel before cutting back for Paulinho to tap in.
City were struggling to keep the ball but, thankfully, Braga were giving it to them in dangerous areas.
Kelechi Iheanacho’s pressure saw Bruno Viana play a short backpass and Cengiz Under intercepted.
The Turk should have scored his first City goal, but hit the ball at the hand of an unwitting Matheus.
Schmeichel was required to keep the deficit at one going into half-time.
The Dane fumbled Paulinho’s shot, but then clawed it out and got up quickly to jump out and block Horta’s follow-up.
On the stroke of half-time, he saved with his feet to keep Paulinho out again.
Rodgers, clearly not happy with what he had seen, brought Tielemans and Fofana on at half-time and immediately City took control of the game, Under nearly bending a shot into the far corner, with Matheus equal to it.
But more was required, and so
on came Maddison and Vardy. Again, the impact was instant, Vardy latching on to Tielemans’ through ball, rounding the keeper, and tucking away, only for the offside flag to be raised.
But the threat was there and the vital equalising goal came. It was scored by another academy graduate.
Maddison twisted and turned on the left-hand side to lose his marker, rifling a cross into the six-yard box, Thomas adjusting his feet in time to steer the ball goalwards. Matheus scrambled to keep it out, but could not .
With AEK Athens losing to Zorya Luhansk, City had the goal that would clinch their place in the knockout stages. They wanted a winner that would secure top spot, but in pushing for it, they paid the price.
Galeno skipped around Fofana, another substitute, played in Fransergio, and he finished.
But as the old mantra goes, Foxes never quit, and City kept their heads, Vardy and Maddison helping the ball wide to Marc Albrighton, who drilled to the back post for the number nine to get number 10 for the season and send City through with two games to spare.