Birmingham City 1-2 Leicester City- Player Ratings

Birmingham City 1-2 Leicester City 

Leicester made club history by making it 8 consecutive wins in the league against Birmingham on Tuesday night. The visitors had control of the game from the start and Lloyd Dyer gave his side the lead that they deserved in the 24th minute.

Birmingham did improve slightly in the 2nd period but never really had enough to look like going on to get something from the game. Jamie Vardy had caused problems for the Birmingham defence all night and he made the game safe in the 82nd minute with a smart finish following a Leicester counter attack. Substitute Peter Lovenkrands did get one back for Birmingham right at the death with a header from inside the penalty area but by this time it was too late to salvage something from the game.

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Birmingham City

Darren Randolph: Beaten at his near post for the 1st Leicester goal but did make a couple of decent saves to keep his side in with a chance during the game. 6.5
Amari Bell: Made his debut at left back following a late injury to Mitch Hancox. Will improve with age and game time but inexperience showed at times. 6.0
Kyle Bartley: Played his first game since new years day following a hamstring injury and struggled against Nugent and the pace of Vardy. 5.5
Will Packwood: Youngster is enjoying a pretty successful return following his broken leg that he suffered last January and did not disgrace himself once again during this game, earning the BCFC man of the match by the home fans. 6.5
Paul Caddis: Has gone off the boil slightly in recent games and tonight was not one of his finest matches. 6.0
Tom Adeyemi: Another player that is returning to from injury and he needs another game or two in order to reach his maximum again. 6.0
Olly Lee: Was substituted at half time and could not get a grip of the game from his central midfield role. 5.5
Albert Rusnak: Offered glimpses of his talent once again to the home fans but like Saturday’s FA Cup defeat to Swansea, it was only glimpses and Blues supporters will want to see more from him. 6.5
Reece Brown: The academy graduate his becoming a favourite of the St Andrews faithful and put in another good shift on Tuesday night. 6.5
Chris Burke: Looked a threat from the right hand side and provided the cross for Blues’ late goal but found himself thwarted by Konchesky more often than not.   6.5
Lee Novak: Had a frustrating evening as the lone striker but did not really have the movement or initiative to trouble Leicester’s central defenders. 6.0

Substitutions

Peter Lovenkrands: Offered the home side something a little different when he came on and got himself a deserved goal. 7.0

Leicester City

Kasper Schmeichel: Had few saves to make of any note and will be disappointed not to have kept a clean sheet. 6.5
Ritchie De Laet: Had an okay game but made quite a few fouls and was probably the least comfortable of the Leicester back 4. 6.5
Wes Morgan: Won most headers and tackles there was to be won and led by example as captain. 7.5
Wasilewski: Supported and complimented Morgan well and looked pretty soild throughout. 7.0
Paul Konchesky: Dealt with the threat offered by Chris Burke very well and was not reluctant to join in with any attacks. 7.5
Lloyd Dyer: Bagged himself a first half goal but got less effective as the game went on. Unhappy to be subbed in the second half. 7.0
Mattie James: Had a lot of the ball in midfield and his quick passing was often too much for Blues to handle. 8.0
Danny Drinkwater: Similar to James, he looked to control the tempo of play with his passing which worked effectively on a number of occasions. 8.0
Anthony Knockaert: Had an enjoyable evening against inexperienced full back Bell, and got the beating of him quite a number of times. 7.5
David Nugent: Was always a danger inside the penalty area but not quite as effective as his strike partner Vardy. 7.0
Jamie Vardy: His pace really did cause a lot of problems to the Birmingham defence all game and was a nuisance all night. His finish for Leicester’s second goal was one of an accomplished striker. 8.0

Substitutions

Riyad Mahrez: His pass provided the assist for Vardy’s goal and he enjoyed a pretty good last 20 minutes from the bench. 7.0
Dean Hammond: Replaced Knockaert with around ten minutes to go and had a relatively comfortable time of it on the field 6.0
Kevin Phillips: Received a warm reception from both sets of fans but did not have enough time on the pitch to really do anything. 6.0

Man of the Match

Jamie Vardy: The way in which  he has improved this season is phenomenal. His confidence his sky high at the moment and this was clear for all to see in the way he comfortably dispatched the ball past Randolph for his goal. 8.0
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