Maddison denies victory for Ranieri
Claudio Ranieri had predicted this reunion with Leicester City would be “emotional”, but in the end the overriding feeling was surely one of frustration. Coming up against his former side for the first time since he was sacked as their manager in February last year, Ranieri’s Fulham impressed for long spells before their old frailties resurfaced and three points turned into one.
The hunt for a first clean sheet of the season goes on for Fulham, who had looked uncharacteristically solid until they allowed James Maddison to wander into their penalty area and stroke home a leveller for Leicester with just 16 minutes remaining. It was a goal that showed Ranieri how much work still needs to be done on the training ground, although there was certainly more steel than the home fans had come to expect before Slavisa Jokanovic had been shown the door.
Fulham had deserved their lead, given to them by Aboubakar Kamara, and they would have left Craven Cottage feeling like they had done more than enough to score a decisive second. They had their wobbly moments, too, but there were plenty of reasons for encouragement for Ranieri, who had been serenaded by both sets of fans as early as the sixth minute. “It was a very emotional match for me, with both the Leicester fans and Fulham fans singing my name,” he said.
The Fulham manager had described the death of Leicester chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha as the end of the “fairy tale,” but the crowd’s reaction was proof – as if it were needed – that those memories will linger long in Leicester minds.
The Italian had said before the game that his title-winning Leicester players were still his “boys”, and there were five members of that famous squad who started against their former boss here. Two more, Shinji Okazaki and Demarai Gray, came off the bench to create Maddison’s equaliser.
“I think the draw is right,” said Ranieri, whose side remain at the foot of the table. “I am very happy with our performance. We made some mistakes, but even the big teams make mistakes. When we make mistakes, the big opponents score goals. But soon we will win a game.”
Maddison’s goal extended Leicester’s unbeaten run in the Premier League to six games. They had to ride their luck at the end, when Denis Odoi missed the most glorious of openings in stoppage time, but they will also rue their own failure to convert goalscoring opportunities.
“We had a lot of difficulties,” said Claude Puel, the Leicester manager. “We could have won or lost this game, so a draw is a fair result.”
It was an open affair from the second minute, when Maddison slid a fine pass through to Kelechi Iheanacho. With only Sergio Rico to beat, Iheanacho’s dinked finish cannoned back off the Fulham goalkeeper’s shoulder. Leicester also had chances through Wes Morgan, who twice went close with powerful headers.
It was surely too open for Ranieri’s liking but this was a game in which Fulham were more than holding their own. They had their own set of chances, too, with Luciano Vietto and Calum Chambers going close before Kamara’s speed created the opener. Aleksandar Mitrovic, captaining the side, flicked the ball to Kamara, who sent Leicester defender Caglar Soyuncu sliding into the stands before blasting his shot beneath Kasper Schmeichel. On the touchline, Ranieri stood motionless, his arms folded across his chest.
As Leicester toiled after the break, Fulham grew in confidence and Tom Cairney whistled a shot past the post as they looked certain to double the lead. But then Leicester struck back as Okazaki cut the ball back across goal for the unmarked Maddison to finish firmly.
Fulham responded well. Cairney struck a fierce shot at Schmeichel and Mitrovic fired wide before Odoi missed the best chance of all, stabbing over from only six yards out as the game entered stoppage time. Fulham
Subs Leicester City