Given that Brendan Rodgers has spent much of a so-far miserable season highlighting the need for a refresh of his squad, it seemed apt that all three of his January signings played their part in a welcome win at Aston Villa. Tetê, the Brazilian winger signed from Shakhtar Donetsk, scored on debut to give Leicester the lead at the end of jam-packed first half in which Villa twice squandered their advantage, before the substitute Dennis Praet sealed victory late on.
For Leicester, a first league win since the World Cup appeared both a relief and a cause for celebration. Their only scalps in previous weeks had comprised slender cup wins against fourth-tier opposition – Gillingham and Walsall – and with their next three matches against three of the Premier League’s top five in Tottenham, Manchester United and Arsenal, the urgency for three points was more pronounced, even before digesting Everton’s lunchtime win over the latter. At kick-off, Leicester were outside the relegation zone only on goal difference.
Victory caps a positive week for Leicester, in which their chairman, Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha, confirmed he has cleared £194m of club debts to its parent company, King Power International. Tetê, who spent the first half of the season on loan at Lyon, had Rodgers hopping on the touchline as he twice went close to doubling his tally in the second half. “It is what I have been talking about for 18 months – a right-winger that can take the ball, pass the ball, look after it, make runs and work,” Rodgers said. “What a debut for him. His touch is immaculate. He has a good weight of pass but can run in behind. His finish was absolutely brilliant. He loves football and he is super-professional.”
Victor Kristiansen, a 20-year-old left-back signed from Copenhagen, was another contender for player of the match and Harry Souttar, a £15m arrival from Stoke, rallied after his own goal helped Villa restore their lead and made an important second-half block to deny Ollie Watkins an equaliser. “It felt like a team of mine, being offensive and aggressive,” Rodgers said with a smile. “We had a freshness and a new energy. I’ve been saying this for 12 months – every team needs it.”
Kelechi Iheanacho should have extended Leicester’s lead 42 seconds into the second half but located the side netting and Leon Bailey wasted a chance to equalise shortly after the hour, failing to arrange his feet after being found inside the six-yard box by Emi Buendía. Villa had a 71st-minute equaliser by Philippe Coutinho, a half-time substitute, disallowed before Praet completed the scoring, rounding Emiliano Martínez after seizing on Álex Moreno’s missed clearance. “I am really frustrated and disappointed,” Unai Emery said. “We were thinking about being in the top 10 but I have to be balanced. We have been trying since the beginning to recover a better position in the table.”
Aside from a shock FA Cup defeat to fourth-tier Stevenage last month, there have been few off-days for Villa since Emery took charge in November but the manner of this defeat will hurt the Spaniard and those in the stands. Watkins hooked in from close range to open the scoring on nine minutes after Buendía’s curling shot clattered the crossbar but their dream start was soon forgotten. Leicester were intent on pressing high at Martínez’s goal-kicks and after the Argentinian played the ball short, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall pinched the ball from Boubacar Kamara inside the box. Leicester coolly worked the ball to the fit-again James Maddison, who applied a composed finish.
The Leicester goalkeeper Danny Ward denied Watkins and then Bailey before Souttar inadvertently gave Villa a leg-up, sticking out his right boot as Watkins’s shot dribbled towards goal, wrongfooting Ward. Maddison dropped a first-time shot wide of a post and then Leicester turned the tables. Iheanacho headed in at the back post from a Barnes cross before Tetê nipped in behind the Villa defence and beat Martínez after latching on to an Iheanacho through ball. Rodgers beamed and every outfield Leicester player joined in the celebrations once it became clear the goal would stand. Given the pain they have endured this season, they were never going to allow the moment to pass quietly.
