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Jamie Vardy.
photo: Photo sports
Led by veteran striker Jamie Vardy, newly promoted Leicester City drew 1-1 with underdog Tottenham Hotspur in their Premier League opener.
Spurs dominated the first half, but Pedro Porro’s first goal in the 29th minute was the only time they capitalised on a host of good chances.
After the half-time break, Leicester City once again had a great chance, but when the game reached the 57th minute, Leicester City captain Vardy scored with a header to equalize the score. The visiting team paid a heavy price for wasting opportunities.
Brazil’s Richarlison missed a golden start to win in the final moments of the game, and Tottenham Hotspur could only end the game with one point, while they should have taken all three points in this game.
“It was a disappointing night for us,” Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou told Sky Sports. “We played very well in the first half, controlled the game but wasted chances in front of goal. Same thing in the second half.”
“We started well but after Leicester scored, the crowd got excited and we lost our composure. This was also a problem we had last year and we need to keep working on it and be more decisive in front of goal. Sometimes we make the wrong decisions.
“That’s not our football or our effort. You need to be more ruthless in the final third to get results. If we don’t do that we won’t get the rewards we deserve for our football.”
Celtics coach Angie Postecoglu
photo: AFP
Spurs’ night took a turn for the worse eight minutes into second-half stoppage time when Spurs midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur was stretchered off the pitch following a violent collision.
Surrounded by medical staff, the Uruguayan player was given oxygen but was later reported to have recovered.
Last season, in Australian Postecoglou’s first year as coach, Spurs performed poorly and failed to finish in the top four.
The north London club invested in several new players during the off-season in a bid to challenge for the Champions League qualifying places again, with striker Dominic Solanke the biggest investment.
The former Bournemouth striker, who is back in the Premier League a year after returning to the second tier, should have opened his Spurs goal account in the first half at the King Power Stadium.
Solanke’s miscued shots put Leicester out of trouble early on before Boro connected on a James Maddison cross and slotted home.
Tottenham Hotspur’s Pedro Porro celebrates scoring a goal.
photo: Photo sports
The second half seemed to depend on how many goals Spurs could score, and Solanke once again wasted a great scoring opportunity.
However, Vardy made no mistake as Leicester City took a point, with the 37-year-old scoring the eighth Premier League opening-day goal of his career, a mark only surpassed by Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah.
“I think age is just a number,” Vardy said. “As long as I continue to take care of myself and my legs feel good, then I will keep going as long as my body allows me to.”
“I wouldn’t say I did anything different in terms of my game. Probably adapted a little bit by dropping back, but I think the most important thing was that I looked after my recovery as much as possible.”
– Reuters
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