Player Ratings: Leicester City vs Leeds United

Leicester City and Leeds United faced off at the King Power in Saturday’s early Premier League kick-off.

Leicester headed into the game with just one win to their name from five, whilst Leeds were hopeful that new boss Jesse Marsch would guide them to a much-needed three points in his first outing.

And, to Marsch’s credit, Leeds looked a much more composed, compact outfit than they have done in recent weeks.

However, Leicester eventually took the lead after 67 minutes when Harvey Barnes slotted coolly past Illan Meslier.

Brilliant from Harvey Barnes! ?

The forward plays a one-two with Kelechi Iheanacho before picking out the far corner ?

We have our opener at the King Power! pic.twitter.com/0pnGUUonvR

— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) March 5, 2022

That goal separated the two sides on the day, pushing Leeds closer to the relegation zone as we enter the business end of the season.

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Leicester player ratings

Kasper Schmeichel (7) – A quiet but competent first-half display from the Dane. Made some excellent saves in the second half and commanded his area well.

Hamza Choudhury (4.5) – Played out of position at right-back and his lack of familiarity in that role was on show throughout the game. Struggled to deal with Jack Harrison and was taken off after 60 minutes.

Daniel Amartey (5.5) – Not the most impressive showing but also didn’t really do much wrong.

Caglar Soyuncu (7) – Made a number of good clearances and blocks throughout the clash.

Luke Thomas (6) – Kept Raphinha quiet and helped out offensively as well.

Wilfred Ndidi (6) – Should have done better with his free header at the end of the first half. Helped keep Rodrigo and James quiet, taken off after 76 minutes.

Youri Tielemans (5) – A very underwhelming display that saw him struggle to keep up with the pace of the game.

Kieran Dewsbury-Hall (6) – Made some imposing runs and pressed well.

Marc Albrighton (4) –  A very poor showing that included some very poor crossing and dribbling. Surprised he was allowed to stay on for the 90 minutes.

Jamie Vardy (6) – Had a bright start to the game and got in behind a few times but was unable to score. Taken off after 60 minutes due to his lack of match fitness.

Harvey Barnes (7.5) – Had some joy getting in behind Stuart Dallas in the first half but failed to make his chances count. Eventually got his goal from the left flank after a composed finish. Leicester’s biggest threat on the day.

Substitutes

Kelechi Iheanacho (6.5) – Came on for the final 30 minutes and would work a nice one-two with Barnes for the opener.

Ademola Lookman (4) – An uneventful 30-minute sub outing for the Englishman.

Nampalys Mendy (4) – Did little whilst on the pitch but Leeds did not score an equaliser when he came on so job done.

Leeds player ratings

Illan Meslier (5.5) – Had little to do in the first 45 and dealt with Leicester’s high press fairly well. Could not do too much about Barnes’ goal.

Stuart Dallas (4) – Marked Harvey Barnes fairly poorly and allowed the winger to get in behind too easily. Should have been tighter to Barnes for his opener.

Luke Ayling (5) – Played out of position at centre-back and did not look too comfortable in the role.

Pascal Struijk (4.5) – Struggled to prevent Jamie Vardy getting in behind, picking up an early yellow card after bringing down the Englishman who was nearly through on goal.

Junior Firpo (5) – Was hardly involved in the first 45. A similar story in the second half. Did keep a poor Albrighton quiet though.

Robin Koch (4) – Game seemed to pass the German by for the most part.

Raphinha (4) – A very underwhelming first half that saw Raphinha lose the ball on a number of occasions. Brighter in the second, having an effort cleared off the line, but still disappointing.

Mateusz Klich (4) – Struggled to help Leeds control the game and was eventually subbed off after 70 minutes.

Rodrigo (4.5) – Got back in the required shape well when Leeds did not have the ball to force Leicester to go long, but struggled with his passing on the day. Was taken off after 64 minutes.

Jack Harrison (6.5) – Made a nuisance of himself down Leicester’s right and created a few decent chances which came to nothing. Taken off after 76 minutes.

Daniel James (4) – Was not involved in the tie very much, had just one shot on target. Leeds need Patrick Bamford back ASAP.

Substitutes

Joe Gelhardt (5) – Came on after 64 minutes and was much livelier than the man he replaced.

Adam Forshaw (4) – Brought on to try and help Leeds get some control in midfield. Was booked a minute after coming on but still looked slightly better than Klich.

Tyler Roberts (2.5) – On for the final 15 minutes, did very little and picked up an injury.

What they said

Jesse Marsch on experiencing the Premier League for the first time: “Football is football. I know the league is so big and the fan support is so great. Our fans were awesome, the passion and support they gave to the team.

“But if you have been in football it doesn’t matter where you have been. My focus is on the group, helping them get better and improve.

“This is my office, whether in the Bundesliga or Premier League. I just want to help the players be the best they can be.

“We play like this and we will get enough points to take care of ourselves and that’s what we have to focus on and not let the table affect our mentality, commitment and clarity.”

Brendan Rodgers on Kasper Schmeichel’s performance: “It’s what you want your goalkeeper to do when they are called upon. You have to fight, you know they have quality and when he was asked to make saves he did that.”

What you may have missed

Leicester City showed their support for Ukraine in their ongoing conflict pre-match:

(Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)

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