Ben Fisher’s match report is here, so I’m going to sign off. Thanks for your company and emails – goodnight!
“As a United fan,” says Liz White, “I’m fine with a spell of boring competence to be honest.”
Post-match reaction
Christian Eriksen
It hasn’t been beautiful for 90 minutes but we have three wins. We want to do better but it’s a good start. It was similar to Southampton – we have to kill the game earlier, otherwise it will be tight at the end. The games keep coming – Thursday/Sunday until after the World Cup.
Jadon Sancho
It was a great team goal, I’m just glad we got the three points. I’m getting more comfortable. It was good to get to know the team in pre-season – I missed it last year – and we worked on a few things.
It was a forgettable game, settled by a classy goal from Jadon Sancho. It’s far too soon to say that United are back, but Erik ten Hag will be happy with back-to-back clean sheets away from home. The last time that happened in the league was in March 2021. Casemiro was good when he came on, and the new centre-back pairing of Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane were again impressive.
Leicester played well enough in the middle of the pitch but lacked belief in the final third. They need a win asap.
Full time: Leicester 0-1 Man Utd
Peep peep! Manchester United move up to fifth after their third consecutive victory.
90+3 min: Great chance for Leicester! A long ball forward is touched on deftly by Daka towards Justin, in space to his right. He has a touch but then shoots high and wide from the edge of the area. That was Leicester’s best chance of the game.
Updated
90+2 min After a good move from Leicester, Maddison shoots over from 20 yards with his left foot. He made space nicely, moving away from Casemiro, but then lifted his shot over the top.
90 min Four minutes of added time.
89 min United’s control of the game has been much greater since Casemiro came on. Fernandes moves down the right and hammers a cross that hits the stretching Iheanacho and flies just over the bar.
87 min: Man Utd substitution Fred for Marcus Rashford.
87 min: Leicester substitution Patson Daka replaces Jamie Vardy.
87 min Vardy is booked for dissent after being penalised, probably harshly, for a tackle on Malacia.
86 min This is a better spell for United, who have spent most of the last few minutes in the Leicester half.
84 min Fernandes slides a through ball down the inside-right channel towards Ronaldo, who hammers a low cross/shot that evades Eriksen in the middle. Ronaldo looks sharp tonight.
83 min Dewsbury-Hall has a long-range shot blocked by Martinez. United break and Dalot stands up a cross towards Ronaldo beyond the far post. He launches into a scissor kick that goes into the ground before bouncing over Ward and a few yards wide.
82 min Fernandes nutmegs Thomas and pings a pass out to Rashford on the left. He plays in Ronaldo, who tries to give Eriksen an open goal with a low first-time cross. It’s cut out superbly by a sliding defender, Ndidi I think. United win the ball back and Rashford mishits a left-footed shot wide from around 15 yards.
Updated
81 min Nothing is happening. It’s been a strangely bloodless game.
78 min Thomas does well to stop Dalot’s low pass/cross finding its way through to Eriksen in the area.
76 min Casemiro has played well, bringing a bit of calmness and authority to the United midfield. He gets on the ball a helluva lot. Meanwhile, Leicester are bringing on Kelechi Iheanacho for Youri Tielemans; that should mean a switch to a 4-4-2.
Updated
73 min A dangerous throuh ball from Fernandes towards Dalot is well cut out by Evans. A stat on BT Sport shows that Leicester have had only seven touches in the United area all night.
71 min Barnes runs Dalot in the area and tries to cross into the six-yard box. Dalot slides in to block, with the ball ricocheting off Barnes and out for a goalkick. Varane and Martinez are straight over to congratulate Dalot, which is either the sign of an improved team spirit or a slightly disdroportionate reaction to winning a goalkick.
70 min This has been an exceedingly forgettable game.
68 min: United substitution Cristiano Ronaldo replaces Jadon Sancho, who scored a good goal but was otherwise pretty quiet. Marcus Rashford will move to the left wing.
67 min Maddison’s free-kick thumps into the wall.
65 min McTominay puts hands on Maddison on the edge of the D, a dangerous free-kick to concede. This is a chance for Leicester.
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64 min Barnes turns Dalot neatly and slides the ball into Vardy, whose return pass falls short. United are asking for trouble with their passive second-half performance.
62 min Leicester continue to dominate possession, though Casemiro has already made two or three decent interceptions.
59 min: United substitution Casemiro replaces Anthony Elanga. That means Eriksen will move to No10 and Fernandes to the right wing.
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58 min Vardy reverses a good return pass to Maddison, who can’t take it in his stride on the edge of the area. Martinez clears.
Updated
57 min Casemiro is getting ready to come on.
57 min “Hi Rob – Arsenal fan here,” says Allan Castle. “United’s lukewarm, competent but uninspiring performance here against the league’s bottom team all but ensures they’ll beat our unbeaten side comfortably on Sunday, doesn’t it? Can you give me some encouragement to shake my pessimism?”
You’re the superior association football team? Or will that make Ronaldo’s 117th-minute equaliser even more painful?
55 min Tielemans takes the corner short, gets it back and then finds Dewsbury-Hall in space on the edge of the area. His shot is blocked by Malacia.
55 min Dewsbury-Hall’s free-kick is booted behind for a corner by Fernandes. This is Leicester’s best spell of the game, by a distance.
54 min In the last five minutes, Leicester have had 81 per cent of you know what.
52 min Dewsbury-Hall twists Eriksen inside out on the right edge of the box and hammers a cross that is headed over by the backpedalling Barnes at the far post. The cross was slightly too high, but this is much better from Leicester.
Updated
51 min: Good save by de Gea! Maddison takes the resulting free-kick, curling it towards the top corner from about 30 yards, and De Gea flies to his left to beat it away. It was a fine strike and a decent save.
49 min Dewsbury-Hall breaks promisingly and is bundled over by Martinez, who is booked. Martinez isn’t impressed with the decision, but it looked fair enough by modern standards.
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49 min Lots of Leicester possession at the start of the second half, almost all of it in the middle third.
47 min “Raphaël Varane had ‘R. Varane’ on the back of his shirt at Real Madrid,” says Kári Tulinius. “I don’t know when he started it, but it started there. At Lens he was just plain ‘Varane’. I think he changed it as well for his national team shirt sometime after the last Euros.”
Yeah, apparently it all started when he first heard Slide Away.
46 min Peep peep! Leicester begin the second half. They’ve made a slight tactical change – Dewsbury-Hall has moved to the right wing and Maddison is playing as the No10.
Making it look so easy 😍
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) September 1, 2022
Jadon Sancho puts Manchester United in the driving seat ✅ pic.twitter.com/rZXyKc50eK
“Apropos nothing... why does Varane have ‘R Varane’ on the back of his shirt?” says Brendan Large. “Is there a glut of Varanes at United that the rest of us are unaware of?”
I assumed it was an Oasis reference.
Half-time entertainment
It’s not the Sky Strikers, but it’ll have to do.
Half time: Leicester 0-1 Man Utd
Peep peep! Man Utd lead at the King Power Stadium thanks to a smooth finish from Jadon Sancho. Manchester United have been much the better team, albeit without creating many chances, against a Leicester team who are obviously lacking confidence.
See you in 10 minutes for the second half.
45 min Barnes dances away from Dalot, only to slice his cross out of play. He looks Leicester’s biggest threat.
43 min Malacia is booked for a foul on Justin. He got a touch on the ball but then pulled Justin back, I think.
42 min I’d say United have been decent; no more than that. Leicester look bereft of confidence, Barnes and Maddison aside, and their defending for the goal was poor. But a goal would change everything. We’ve seen games like a million times before.
41 min A typical pass down the side towards Vardy is smoothly intercepted by Varane. The difference a fit, world-class centre-half can make, eh.
39 min “Speaking of the poor unfortunate ‘Quakes, I remember reading a rather good article recently about the sins of one John Fisher...” says Harriet Osborn. “On a happier note, is this the Dortmund version of Sancho, finally?”
Not yet, but he’s getting there. He’s a rare species: an English player who needed a season to adjust to the Premier League.
37 min At the other end, Barnes whips a lovely curling shot from 22 yards that goes a few yards wide of the far top corner.
37 min Rashford scoots away from Ndidi on the right and hammers a cutback towards Sancho. He takes a quick touch and swishes a shot that has the sting taken out of it by Justin.
37 min “‘Literally’ has been recorded to have been used to mean figuratively since the mid-18th century,” says Andy Flintoff, “so the complaints about the ‘wrong’ usage of the word are about 270 years too late.”
Cheers Jamie.
36 min Rashford’s shot from the edge of the area is blocked by Evans. United have been well on top since Sancho’s goal.
35 min Sancho teases Justin and plays in Malacia, whose sharp cutback is well intercepted by Evans at the near post. Rashford was waiting behind him.
34 min “Are there any medical facilities near the away dugout?” says Matt Dony. “Is there a chance Ronaldo could undergo a sneaky medical for some last-minute move while he’s there? Is it worth Forest throwing a cheeky bid their way while United are distracted with actually playing football?”
Asking Ronaldo to complete a medical is an insult, surely. Can’t he just show them a topless picture.
32 min Actually de Gea did make one save, but that was from Dewsbury-Hall’s long-range shot. Leicester haven’t really got into the United area.
31 min Leicester can’t get Vardy in the game. They’ve played some decent stuff in midfield, with Maddison and Barnes looking quite bright, but I don’t think de Gea has had a save to make.
30 min “Rob, me dear, though it is early in the season, myself and a frien...acquaintance heard commentary that seemed to reach peak wrongness in the use of the word ‘literally’,” says Ian Copestake. “The cunning linguist in question informed us that a psychologist had been hired over the summer to ‘literally’ get inside the players’ heads.”
To be fair, neurotechnology is pretty advanced these days.
28 min Dalot is booked for pulling back Barnes, who turned him neatly on the halfway line.
27 min Eriksen hits a crisp left-footed drive from 25 yards that is comfortably saved, low to his left, by Ward. United, who started slowly, have gone up a level since Sancho’s goal.
25 min Sancho has underachieved so far at United, but his best moments have demonstrated a rare and precious asset – the ability to play with a resting heart rate in the opposition penalty area. He did it again there, walking calmly past Ward before sliding the ball into the empty net.
Updated
Dalot collected a Leicester goalkick and flipped the ball down the right to Fernandes. He moved it infield into Rashford, who had far too much time to measure a through pass for Sancho. He timed his run perfectly and strolled round Ward to score. Expertly done.
Updated
GOAL! Leicester 0-1 Man Utd (Sancho 23)
Jadon Sancho gives United the lead with an accomplished finish!
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22 min “Rob,” says Mary Waltz, “there is a team in my neck of the woods that has been at the bottom of the table and would welcome CR7 with open arms, the San Jose Earthquakes!!”
There’s a precedent for a legendary United No7 going there, although George Best was a few years younger than Ronaldo is now.
21 min The free-kick is laid off to Dewsbury-Hall, whose curling shot is comfortably held to his right by de Gea.
20 min Eriksen fouls someone – don’t ask me, I missed it – 30 yards from goal. Maddison is over the ball…
18 min Maddison is starting to impose his personality on the game. He fires a dangerous pass into Tielemans that takes a slight touch off the stretching Sancho. Moments later, a good cross from Dewsbury-Hall is headed away by Martinez.
17 min “Once automated offsides roll out,” says Yash Gupta, “VAR should be scrapped for everything else. I’m sorry but it is really getting on my nerves and not so much the decisions but time which just shows incompetence.”
My current bugbear with VAR is the glib phrase “offside is factual”. Tell that to Alexander Isak.
16 min Maddison’s pass towards Vardy takes multiple ricochets, including off the arm of Martinez. It almost runs kindly for Tielemans, but Varane nips in to make an important clearance.
15 min Erik ten Hag is scribbling some tactical observations on his notepad; either that or he’s doing a Jackie Treehorn. I’d be doodling if I were him; it hasn’t been the greatest game so far.
13 min Maddison stabs a classy pass towards Barnes that is crucially intercepted by Dalot. I know he’s not the best player in the world, I know he occasionally behaves like a 25-year-old, but I bloody love James Maddison. When he’s on the pitch, football is fun.
13 min “Rob,” says Rod Wooden, “never mind about Ronaldo being on the bench against Norwich, he would probably be only a substitute for Norwich at the moment. In fact the way the mighty Canaries are currently playing, with Josh Sargent on fire and the eternally great Teemu Pukki, he would be lucky to even get in the squad.”
Guardian exclusive: Ronaldo turned down by Canaries.
11 min: Just wide from Eriksen! That was much better from United, a quick one-touch move on the left-hand side. Eventually the ball was fed into Eriksen, who dummied to go across goal and then dragged a shot past the near post. I don’t think it would have counted as Sancho looked offside in the build up, although you never know with VAR.
Updated
9 min A couple of corners from Eriksen are headed away by Ndidi.
8 min Rashford’s speculative ball from the right finds its way through to Fernandes on the far side of the area. He takes a touch but then hits a tame cross straight at Justin. That was half a chance for United.
6 min Barnes walks away from Eriksen and finds Thomas, who has time to turn and cross. Varane heads it clear.
4 min Nothing much to report. It’s been a fairly tentative start from both teams.
2 min Leicester’s shape looks closer to 4-2-3-1, with Tielemans playing deep alongside Soumare, rather than 4-1-4-1. For United, Sancho has started on the left with the other Anthony, Elanga, on the right.
1 min Leicester will move up to 14th if they win tonight; a victory for United would lift them to fifth.
1 min Peep peep! Manchester United, kicking from right to left as we watch, get the game under way. It’s 20th v 12th in the table.
A reminder of the teams
Leicester City (4-1-4-1) Ward; Justin, Evans, Ndidi, Thomas; Soumare; Maddison, Tielemans, Dewsbury-Hall, Barnes; Vardy.
Substitutes: Iversen, Soyuncu, Castagne, Albrighton, Praet, Brunt, Iheanacho, Perez, Daka.
Manchester United (4-2-3-1) De Gea; Dalot, Varane, Martinez, Malacia; McTominay, Eriksen; Sancho, Fernandes, Elanga; Rashford.
Substitutes: Heaton, Kovar, Lindelof, Maguire, Fred, Casemiro, van de Beek, Garnacho, Ronaldo.
Referee Craig Pawson.
Updated
“A long spell as a substitute should inform Ronaldo that as great as he was, and is at times, he can’t dictate the terms of his transfer anymore,” says Mary Waltz. “I imagine he was a bit surprised that Champions League clubs were not lining up to get him.”
Yes, especially as City wanted him a year ago. I wonder how that would have worked out. Fifty goals and another Champions League winners’ medal? A transfer request when he was left out at home to Norwich?
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Brendan Rodgers on Wesley Fofana
🗣 'I know where the statement came from and I know it wasn't Wesley Fofana'
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) September 1, 2022
Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers gives his view on Wesley Fofana's transfer to Chelsea 😳 pic.twitter.com/XReyCTfIkp
Football Weekly klaxon!
“Hello Rob,” writes Sandy. “I hope we (United) continue our momentum. It was a hard-fought victory against Southampton last week. I am not reading too much into Leicester sitting at the bottom of the table. When United are in town, the teams get a different kick, this could be anybody’s game. If you know more about Ronaldo and which club is he going to join, then please let me know.”
He’s staying at United, at least until January. I didn’t expect that a week ago.
“McTominay again,” sniffs Dan Quinn (and Neil Carter). “Can someone please explain to me what he does to merit a place in our starting team?”
At his best, he’s fine – I thought he was player of the match in the Europa League final, for example. But he’s limited and erratic, and when he’s bad he’s a meme generator, so I take your point. He’ll obviously be a squad player once Casemiro settles in.
Updated
Team news
A bit of good news for Leicester. The influential pair of Wilfred Ndidi and James Maddison return to the side, as does Luke Thomas. The men dropping out are Dennis Praet, Daniel Amartey and Timothy Castagne.
Manchester United are unchanged.
Leicester City (possible 4-1-4-1) Ward; Justin, Evans, Ndidi, Thomas; Soumare; Maddison, Tielemans, Dewsbury-Hall, Barnes; Vardy.
Substitutes: Iversen, Soyuncu, Castagne, Albrighton, Praet, Brunt, Iheanacho, Perez, Daka.
Manchester United (4-2-3-1) De Gea; Dalot, Varane, Martinez, Malacia; McTominay, Eriksen; Sancho, Fernandes, Elanga; Rashford.
Substitutes: Heaton, Kovar, Lindelof, Maguire, Fred, Casemiro, van de Beek, Garnacho, Ronaldo.
Referee Craig Pawson.
Updated
The set is staged
🏟️ 🔜#LEIMUN pic.twitter.com/9ELJNNvZFj
— Leicester City (@LCFC) September 1, 2022
Transfer news
Both clubs have been busyish today. Leicester have signed the Belgian defender Wout Faes from Reims for around £15m, while Manchester United have bought Antony from Ajax for £82m and the goalkeeper Martin Dubravka on loan from Newcastle. None of them are eligible to play tonight.
And if you prefer transfers to actual football, we have a dedicated deadline-day blog. Let Scott Murray be your Jim White.
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Preamble
Hello and welcome to live coverage of Leicester City v Manchester United at the King Power Stadium. A year ago, Brendan Rodgers was the same odds as Erik ten Hag to succeed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as Manchester United manager. Now he’s second favourite behind Steven Gerrard to become the next Premier League manager to receive a P45. We shouldn’t be surprised – Leicester got rid of Claudio Ranieri nine months after the Premier League’s greatest fairytale – but it still doesn’t really compute that Rodgers is fighting for his job.
There are reasons for Leicester’s relative struggles. They have had vile luck with injuries over the last couple of years, and their net spend since Rodgers took over in 2019 is among the lowest in the league. But nobody cares about mitigating circumstances when you are bottom of the table.
Football’s mutability should be Rodgers’ hope. A high-profile win against an improving but still eminently beatable Manchester United would reduce the noise and lift Leicester off the bottom of the table. Leicester’s last two home games against United were rousing victories – 4-2 in the league last year, 3-1 in the FA Cup quarter-final season before. On both occasions, Rodgers outwitted Solskjaer.
Whatever happens in the next few weeks, history will remember Rodgers as one of the best coaches in Leicester’s history. But he’ll hope the story isn’t done just yet.
On Filbert Way, eyes firmly on #LEIMUN 👀 pic.twitter.com/uPDnBOmlNX
— Leicester City (@LCFC) September 1, 2022
Kick off 8pm.
