The Fosse Way

 

We scored a goal, we scored a goal… we scored a goal, we scored a goal… we scored a goal! Then like London buses, another came along!

Let’s not get carried away, it’s miles away from what would have been needed for safety. In fact, scrub that… let’s get carried away! We scored a goal, we scored a goal! 

The reverse fixture at St Mary’s probably counts as the high water mark for the season. That game was a real topsy-turvy affair, with Jordan Ayew grabbing the winner against 10 men deep into stoppage time. There wasn’t anything like that sort of drama on Saturday, but we’ll absolutely take the win and bank the points.

Both clubs have changed managers since the reverse fixture, twice in Southampton’s case, and both teams have been long since relegated. This led to a strange atmosphere pre-match. Things were definitely subdued on the way into the stadium. The fan zone was pretty packed though, with Abdul Fatawu doing a turn on the stage and posing for dozens of pictures – the queue for which stretched all the way around the marquee. 

Fatawu was the instigator of that comeback earlier in the season and it was great to see him looking fit and well pre-match. As one of the few genuinely likeable players in this wretched squad, I’m sure we’ll all agree that the hope is that the little cameo at the fan zone isn’t the last we see of him.

News filtered through to the fan zone screen that Ruud van Nistelrooy had made some enforced changes to the lineup, Jakub Stolarczyk replacing the injured Mads Hermansen for his first start since January, the last time we won. Jordan Ayew replaced the concussed Facundo Buonanotte. Oliver Skipp in for Boubakary Soumare was the final change, which was almost enforced due to Soumare’s perceived lack of effort at Wolves last week – although that performance was no different to any of the his previous performances if we’re being honest.

For the Saints, interim manager Simon Rusk picked the same eleven that started their last game against Fulham, in their quest to get beyond Derby County’s infamous 11 point record low points tally. For both sides, the arranging deck chairs on the Titanic analogy sprang to mind. 

In the stadium, as the teams were read out, there were boos in the stands for some of Leicester’s players. It’s never a good look and pretty counterintuitive, but it is an indication of how many fans’ patience has run out with some in this squad. Jamie Vardy’s name was naturally cheered to the rafters though.

During a slow opening 10 minutes, it was remarkable how many people around me in the Kop were saying just how poor both sides looked. It was a Premier League game in name only. The subdued crowd did spring into life in the now traditional 14th minute though by berating Director of Football Jon Rudkin. It was far louder than it has been and the chants continued into the following minute. 

In fact, Sack the Board was still ringing out as Bilal El Khannouss linked with Luke Thomas down the left. As the Saints defenders charged back towards their goal, Jamie Vardy held his run to suddenly find himself in space and a perfectly timed pass from El Khannouss at his feet. 

What happened next was a sight to behold. Vardy smashed the ball into the net and raced away to celebrate. It was a lovely move by Leicester and an emphatic finish for goal number 199 in royal blue. The crowd erupted in joy, relief and a bit of astonishment. Friends and families hugged each other and commemorative photos were taken. The run of 9 and a bit games since the last goal against Brighton in early December was over (for context, I bought our Christmas tree on the morning of that game!) We scored a goal rang out for a good couple of minutes.

Just as things were settling back down, Ayew collided with referee David Webb. With the official lying flat on the ground, Vardy added another page to his book of bravado, by blowing the whistle to halt play.

Both physios attended to the hapless Webb, and the players entertained themselves with a bit of keep ball during a 12-minute delay.

Webb’s Premier League debut had lasted barely 20 minutes before he was replaced by Sam Barrott. 

Once the game restarted, the previous pattern of errors continued. We didn’t really look like adding to our lead, however for the first time all season, we didn’t look like conceding either. Both teams were poor, but we were a bit better than them. 

As the game drifted towards what would normally have been half time, Leicester won a free kick in shooting range. To the surprise of no one, the initial shot from Jordan Ayew hit the wall. People were actually starting to sit back down, when the rebound fell kindly back to him, allowing him to crash the ball through the bodies and into the bottom corner. Two goals! Two!

We’d scored first, not conceded and led at the break. My sister-in-law even got a round in in the concourse to celebrate.

Southampton made two changes at the break, and two more soon after (to the consternation of their travelling fans as Mateus Fernandes and Kamaldeen Sulemana were replaced). In truth, little changed other than Southampton looking slightly tighter at the back. Neither side really pushed themselves second half, Southampton’s disallowed offside goal around the hour mark the only real moment of concern.

Stolarczyk looked comfortable in goal, made regulation saves when he needed to and really commanded his box. With just a year left on his contract, a new one really has to be at the top of the summer to-do list. 

In front of him, the defence were rarely troubled, with Luke Thomas continuing his good form and even Wout Faes managing to concentrate for 90 minutes. 

On a different occasion, I could go into concerns about how little we created second half, but the reality is, after the season we’ve endured, I’m not going to, let’s enjoy the win. Vardy desperately wanted goal number 200 and even took a free kick from outside the box (which was on target and begs the question why we’ve not tried that before in this post-Maddison era?)

The big plus in the second half, aside from not conceding, was the 20 minutes Jeremy Monga got, where he once again looked very much ready for first team football. What a player he looks. 

Vardy was replaced late-on to a standing ovation in his penultimate home game, with 16-year-old Jake Evans making his second appearance and getting his first touch of the ball. He could have had a tap-in if Patson Daka had completed a pass across the box in added time (we’d had two goals, let’s not be greedy). Another youngster, Michael Golding, made his debut in added time and got to touch the hallowed turf for 30 seconds or so.

The whistle went bang-on the 4 minute added time mark, meaning there wasn’t time to take the corner that resulted from Daka’s blocked pass mentioned above, to the sound of cheers rather than jeers for a change. We’d kept a clean sheet for the first time since Bournemouth back in October (for context, I probably bought some Halloween stuff before that game).

The victory meant that van Nistelrooy picked up just his third win during his reign, but his sixth point against teams Steve Cooper also faced, with three of those teams still left to play. 

There was plenty of chatter post-match around it being a good sign we could beat one of the expected ‘stronger’ Championship sides. I think it’s a bit early for that, there’s a lot of water to flow along the Soar before next season.  Let’s just revel in the now and enjoy the opportunity to have a nice Bank Holiday weekend.

We scored a goal, we scored a goal…