Leicester were relegated from the Premier League despite producing one of the narrow football scores of the weekend. Harvey Barnes came through for Leicester in the important first goal (34) after combining with Kelechi Iheanacho to temporarily move them out of the bottom three. Dean Smith’s team had entered the day in the relegation zone, two points below Everton in 17th. However, when Abdoulaye Doucoure’s spectacular goal gave Everton the lead against Bournemouth at Goodison Park, the King Power Stadium fell silent. Even Wout Faes’ first goal for Leicester (62), a header from a corner from Youri Tielemans, couldn’t change the situation because their fate was already decided. Then, Pablo Fornals ramped up the pressure on Leicester by halving the deficit in the last minutes (79).
Leicester was in need of a victory and counting on Everton to make a mistake against Bournemouth at Goodison Park. It appeared to be a difficult task for the Foxes after their victory over Wolves at the King Power Stadium, their first victory in more than a month. But Leicester overcame their fears to deliver the kind of effort that has been missing for most of the relegation battle. Iheanacho was at the center of Leicester’s offensive play as he involved others and came close to scoring the game’s first goal before missing the target.
When Leicester ultimately grabbed the lead via Barnes, Iheanacho was involved. The Leicester striker in from the left flank and quickly exchanged passes with the goal scorer before delivering a nice finish from an angle. Leicester is better. Early in the second half, Jonny Evans nearly ruined all of Leicester’s progress when he misjudged a corner and headed towards his own goal. Leicester was mostly comfy other than that. Then, when he gave Everton the lead, Doucoure ruined the celebration at the King Power.
Leicester was out of the relegation zone for the entire 43 minutes. Five minutes after Doucoure’s score, Faes increased Leicester’s lead by heading in his first goal for the team, although the celebrations were subdued. It was insufficient to prevent them from being demoted. They required a goal from Bournemouth. Word of a goal from Goodison spread like wildfire in the King Power Stadium bleachers on many occasions. The supporters quickly learned that it was phony news as they broke out roars of joy. With a long-range shot, Fornals then set up a suspenseful conclusion for Leicester, but the hosts held on to win as all eyes were on Goodison Park.
The athletes huddled together to watch the last seconds of the match on a screen. In injury time, Matias Vina of Bournemouth came close to scoring, but Everton custodian Jordan Pickford skillfully blocked his effort. Leicester’s demise was inevitable. The Foxes are returning to the Championship after nine years.
“That, in my opinion, was our best effort today. We earned the victory. Although we exerted considerable pressure, it was not to be. I believed we would need 11 points when I arrived here for the last eight games,” Leicester manager Dean Smith said. “With nine points, we fell two shy of that; the final tally was 11. I will reflect on the Leeds and Everton games, but it has been a long season. The owner, the employees, and the players are all disappointed. That was not to be. It’s upsetting, but I’m sure there will be an internal club assessment from those who have been here the entire season and will understand it. I was given the task of keeping the squad in the Premier League for seven weeks and eight games, but sadly, I’ve come up a little short.”
“Everton retaliated after Leicester did what they were required to do. Sad day today. They’ve enjoyed nine fantastic seasons in the Premier League, along with the miraculous title triumph and subsequent FA Cup victory. A wonderful time in the club’s history has just passed. Even when I came in 1982, Leicester was a yo-yo team,” Alan Smith said. “Leicester performed admirably today. You may feel that Harvey Barnes and James Maddison shouldn’t be in this situation when you observe James Maddison controlling the action. When in this attitude, they have a lot going for them. Fair go to them for playing well under these conditions; that was their best performance in a few months. Although Leicester contributed, there was a sense of despondency.”
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