Leicester missing Mahrez magic as Swansea hit back
No Riyad Mahrez, no stardust for Leicester. Mahrez was not even at the King Power Stadium, but he loomed large over this frustrating afternoon as Leicester struggled to prove they can flourish without him.
The winger has gone Awol after his dream move to Manchester City was blocked by Leicester’s owners on deadline day and, unfortunately for Claude Puel, this game was in desperate need of some Mahrez magic.
Jamie Vardy’s 13th goal of the season appeared to put Leicester in control after a dominant first-half performance, but Federico Fernandez’s equaliser ensured Swansea’s annual survival mission remains on course. This point lifted them out of the relegation zone on goal difference. But the statistics are damning and inescapable for Leicester – they have failed to win in the four games Mahrez has missed since the beginning of last season.
Puel was unable to reveal when the 26-year-old will return, after the Algerian missed three training sessions and two games. He said: “I expect nothing at the moment and Riyad is not my preoccupation straight after the game. This result is a big frustration and it feels like we lost two points. It’s a pity to concede another goal from a set play and we have to work on this. Congratulations to Swansea, but we deserved to win.”
Puel may have guided Leicester from 18th to eighth, but this was a bleak picture of what life would be like without Mahrez, rated at a gargantuan £80million by his club. It was different early on and Leicester were clearly looking to make a statement without Mahrez, with Vardy rewarding their early superiority in the 16th minute.
Harry Maguire’s clever pass found Kelechi Iheanacho and the £25million signing sent Vardy clear with a piece of fortuitous footwork, the England striker producing a clinical finish.
Leicester could have added a second after Fousseni Diabate’s shot was saved by Lukasz Fabianski and then Iheanacho’s effort was cleared off the line by Alfie Mawson. Wilfred Ndidi had a goal disallowed on the half-hour, Swansea in danger of being out of sight.
At this stage it was as if the recent mini-revival under Carlos Carvalhal was a trick of the imagination.
Swansea’s hopes appeared to suffer further collateral damage when Leroy Fer was stretchered off with an Achilles injury. Yet Leicester’s failure to kill off the game before half-time created a sense of uncertainty and Swansea equalised seven minutes into the second period, with their first threatening moment. Ki Sung-yueng’s corner caused all sorts of problems for Leicester, with Fernandez eluding Christian Fuchs to plant a simple header past Kasper Schmeichel.
Despite late pressure from Leicester, a winner proved beyond the home team and Carvalhal – with 11 points from a possible 18 – was the happier manager. He said: “We lost the last seven games here, so we broke this wall and achieved one point when we needed it. A point is like gold for us at the moment.”