Impasse on another for City’s late owner
Benitez cools Rondon-shearer comparisons
customers. Their loyalty was never taken for granted. Offers of free beer, doughnuts and season tickets showed a personal touch. That extended into the city as he made seven-figure donations to the city’s hospitals and universities, leaving a legacy beyond just football.
Before kick-off, a special video tribute to the man affectionately known to all at the club as The Boss was shown on the giant screens.
Special commemorative scarves were held up, displaying the words “Forever in our hearts”, while wreathes were laid on the pitch, led by his son, Aiyawatt.
Ranieri, along with other recent Foxes bosses Craig Shakespeare and Nigel Pearson and former players like Esteban Cambiasso and Robert Huth, were all in the directors’ box to pay their respects.
After an impeccable two-minutes silence, Leicester started off well and would have gone in front, but for Matt Lowton clearing Jamie Vardy’s shot off the line, while Rachid Ghezzal hit the crossbar with a header.
Joe Hart then denied Demarai Gray as the Foxes couldn’t find the goal their football deserved and saved again after the break from Marc Albrighton and Jonny Evans.
Understandably after a week in which they flew to Thailand for 36 hours to attend their owner’s funeral, their energy levels dropped as the match wore on.
Former Leicester striker Chris Wood half-volleyed as Burnley threatened to nick the points, but the afternoon ended on a poignant note.
The late owner’s son led players, staff and former managers around the pitch with tears in his eyes to acknowledge the love and support he has received.
“It was pure emotion,” said current manager Claude Puel. “It was a communion with our fans and players and staff. It was a fantastic connection.
“He was a nice man. He wanted to please the people around him. He was generous, not just with his money but with his feelings.
“He always had a smile and he wanted people around him with a smile.” the campaign, but on a day when they had slipped back into the bottom three following Cardiff’s victory over Brighton, they added three more points to those they collected against Watford last weekend to ease their fears.
His hold-up play, tireless running and the pressure under which he put the Cherries defence, as well as his finishing, rekindled memories of some of his predecessors in the famous number nine shirt, but Benitez was keen not to place too much weight on his shoulders.
The Spaniard said: “We are talking about different players, different times. To go close to Alan Shearer would be almost impossible for anyone here, there’s no doubt about that.
“But if the delivery is good like this cross, Salomon can score these kind of goals.
“I will be fair with the other strikers – they can do it, but you have to have these deliveries all the time.”
Rondon stabbed his side ahead from close range just seven minutes into the game and then headed home his second from Kenedy’s inviting cross five minutes before the break.
In the meantime, Bournemouth defender Adam Smith had been carried off on a stretcher after falling to the turf as he tried to take a quick free-kick and, in the eight minutes of stoppage time his misfortune created, Jefferson Lerma pulled one back for the visitors. They mounted a concerted fightback after the break in an entertaining encounter and thought they had levelled five minutes from time, only for substitute Dan Gosling’s strike to be ruled out for offside.
Benitez said: “We have to give credit to our players, the way that they were fighting for every ball was fantastic.
“Against a good team that was in form, it was difficult to stop them and to create.
“We scored two great goals and after we had chances on the counter-attack against a team that was pushing and attacking all the time.”
Opposite number Eddie Howe admitted his players had given themselves too much to do with their first-half display. 63
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MIKE DEAN played his part by making sure the occasion was not spoiled by any controversy. STAR MAN Awarding a man-ofthe-match seems a bit trite on this occasion, but must be commended.
When Okazaki’s header
drifted past a post, the Foxes didn’t get the
luck they deserved.
TWEET TALK Extremely emotional scenes at the end of the Leicester game.
REF WATCH:
RICARDO PEREIRA
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He said: “I don’t think we performed well in the first half.
“We are disappointed with that start. We gave ourselves a mountain to climb, really, to go 2-0 down away from home.
“We did well in phases of the second half, a lot better, but it wasn’t to be.
“The lads kept going right to the end, so that’s a big positive and it felt like a goal was coming, but we just couldn’t force it.”
Howe’s disappointment was compounded by what looks like a serious knee injury for Smith.
He said: “He’d injured a knee in an earlier tackle.
“He said he felt one of his knees was slightly unstable and then he went to take a quick free-kick and his knee gave way, so it looks like a serious injury.”