McGinn and Trezeguet both line up attempts at the Leicester, but neither can test Schmeichel with their attempts from inside the box.
86'
McGinn takes on Pereira down the left flank and he goes down in search of a penalty, but the referee dismisses his claim.
80'
J. Justin enters the game and replaces B. Chilwell.
Rodgers spares Chilwell the rest of the game as he continues to recover from a hip injury. Justin replaces him at left-back.
78'
F. Guilbert enters the game and replaces M. Targett.
Targett limps off the pitch to be replaced by Guilbert. Another injury concern for Villa.
76'
M. Albrighton enters the game and replaces D. Praet.
Albrighton replaces Praet for the visitors.
75'
J. Vardy has scored a goal for Leicester City! Assist by D. Praet.
GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!! VARDY NOTCHES HIS SECOND!!! 4-1! Vardy puts the game beyond doubt for the Foxes with a clinical finish on the break. Pereira launches a pass forward to Praet, who clips the ball over the Villa defence with the outside of his boot. it falls perfectly for Vardy to take in stride. He surges into the box before drilling his effort low into the bottom-left corner. Game over.
Praet plays a delightful ball over the top for Vardy to collect and score.
71'
Pereira surges down the right flank and into the box towards the byline. Grealish puts pressure on and gives him a slight nudge that sends the Portuguese to the deck. The Foxes appeal for a penalty, but the referee dismisses their claims.
Minute
Description
66'
OVER! Maddison plays a one-two with Vardy before striking at goal from 25 yards, only to blaze his effort just over the bar.
65'
El Ghazi breaks into space down the right flank and he sends a cross into the middle that Pereira has to touch away from Trezeguet at the back post.
64'
H. Barnes enters the game and replaces K. Ịheanachọ.
Rodgers takes the opportunity to withdraw Iheanacho from the game and replaces him with Barnes.
63'
Iheanacho catches Engels with an unintentional arm and the defender goes down in need of treatment.
61'
Douglas Luiz takes on a strike from the edge of the box, only to place his attempt wide of the target. Villa need a moment of magic to get back into the game.
60'
J. McGinn gets yellow.
McGinn catches Maddison on the boot with a lunge and goes into the book.
59'
Trézéguet enters the game and replaces M. Nakamba.
Nakamba is withdrawn for the home side and is replaced by Trezeguet. An attacking change that needed to come from Smith.
57'
Villa need to re-establish a foothold in the contest. They're enjoying a period of possession in the Leicester half, but the visitors look fairly solid at the back.
55'
BLOCK! Konsa puts his body on the line for his team, blocking Iheanacho's effort at the near post from Vardy's cross from the left flank.
54'
Chilwell hangs a cross into the box from the left flank and Iheanacho gets the wrong side of Konsa, but under pressure from the Villa defender, he cannot connect with his header at goal.
50'
M. Targett gets yellow.
Targett is late and a fraction high on Pereira and goes into the book. VAR has a check for a red card, but a yellow is deemed enough.
49'
J. Evans has scored a goal for Leicester City! Assist by J. Maddison.
Maddison puts his delivery on the money and is rewarded as Evans scores.
GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!! EVANS RESTORES THE TWO-GOAL CUSHION!!!! 3-1!!! Leicester regain control of the contest as Evans rises highest to head home Maddison's corner. Maddison hangs his cross deep towards the penalty spot. Evans times his jump to perfection and he loops his header towards the top-left corner. It has the accuracy and the pace to beat the hand of Heaton to find the back of the net.
48'
Leicester break on the counter and build down the left, which allows Chilwell to hang a cross into the middle. Engels has to take action to head behind with Vardy behind him.
46'
We're back underway at Villa Park.
45' +3
Wesley gets yellow.
Wesley is booked in the aftermath of the goal.
HALF-TIME: ASTON VILLA 1-2 LEICESTER CITY
45' +2
J. Grealish has scored a goal for Aston Villa! Assist by E. Konsa.
Konsa nods the ball to Grealish, who does the rest with a low strike that finds the net with the aid of a deflection.
GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!! GREALISH GETS ONE BACK!! 2-1!! The home side get back into the contest just before the break as Grealish's effort finds the corner with the aid of the post. Leicester fail to clear a corner from the right flank by Targett as the ball pinballs around the box. It eventually falls for Grealish in the left inside channel and he strikes an effort towards the bottom-right corner that takes a deflection before striking the inside of the post to find the net. There's a VAR check, but the goal stands.
Targett whips his free-kick into a dangerous position and Ndidi has to head behind to clear the danger for the visitors.
45' +1
Ricardo Pereira gets yellow.
Pereira brings down Grealish in the final third and he goes into the book for an accumulation of fouls in the first half.
45'
Heaton has to race off his line to deny Pereira from crossing into the box from the byline. He pushes the ball behind, although he believes that it comes off the Portuguese last. Leicester get the corner.
41'
K. Ịheanachọ has scored a goal for Leicester City!
GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!! IHEANACHO BUNDLES THE BALL HOME!!!! 2-0!!!! Leicester double their advantage as the forward converts Maddison's cross at the near post with the aid of a deflection off Konsa. Maddison is afforded space and time down the left flank. He whips a low cross in hard towards the run of Iheanacho. The ball takes a deflection off Konsa on to the boot of Iheanacho to find the bottom-left corner.
40'
Douglas Luiz lines up a drive from the edge of the box that takes a deflection. Schmeichel does brilliantly to race off his line to stop it travelling behind and gathers at the second attempt ahead of McGinn.
38'
K. Ịheanachọ gets yellow.
Iheanacho comes in with a sliding challenge on Targett and wins the ball. However, he takes out the full-back with his follow through. The forward is booked for the challenge.
37'
Heaton has to scamper off his line to reach a backpass from Targett ahead of Iheanacho. The ball almost holds up on the wet pitch, but the keeper gets there just...
36'
M. Nakamba gets yellow.
Nakamba is late on Ndidi in the middle of the park and he goes into the book.
35'
Evans rises highest in the box from a cross from Pereira into the middle, but he cannot generate enough power on his header, allowing Heaton to make the claim ahead of Soyuncu.
32'
Praet releases Vardy down the right flank into acres of space. He has Iheanacho unmarked in the middle, but Engels stretches out with a desperate boot to divert it back towards Heaton, who gathers on his line.
31'
Targett puts his delivery into the middle, but the Foxes are solid at the back to clear their lines through Chilwell. He believes that he gets wiped out by Douglas Luiz, but the referee plays on.
30'
Douglas Luiz wins a free-kick off the challenge of Pereira down the left flank for the home side. Targett will whip another cross into the box.
29'
Villa are struggling to compete with the accuracy of Leicester's passing at the moment. The Foxes are playing with a great deal of confidence here.
26'
Konsa has to be alert at the back to stop the run of Iheanacho breaking in behind him from Vardy's clips over the top. It's all hands on deck for Villa at the back.
25'
Maddison cuts open the Villa defence with an incisive pass to Vardy. He breaks forward into the box, but he fails to connect a strike under pressure from Engels. Vardy may have even been offside there and VAR would probably have ruled it out had he scored.
24'
OVER! Villa continue to accumulate free-kicks in the final third. Targett again swings a cross into the box and El Ghazi rises highest to head at goal. His effort drifts away from Schmeichel, but just travels over the bar.
23'
B. Engels enters the game and replaces T. Mings.
Mings was not right for the goal and is replaced by Engels.
20'
J. Vardy has scored a goal for Leicester City! Assist by K. Ịheanachọ.
Iheanacho plays a sublime throughball for Vardy between Mings and Konsa for him to collect and score eventually.
GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!! VARDY SCORES!!! 1-0!!!!! The striker finds the net for the eighth Premier League game in a row to put the Foxes ahead. Iheanacho releases the forward through the middle of the Villa defence even with Mings still in place. He speeds away from Konsa and rounds Heaton. Vardy mis-kicks his first strike at goal, but fortune is on his side as he is able to gather his effort ahead of the recovering Villa men and slot it into the net.
18'
Villa win a free-kick down the right flank as El Ghazi gets blocked off by Chilwell. Targett comes over to the right to whip his cross towards goal, but it sails comfortably over the bar.
16'
Leicester win a corner down the right flank and the home side pass another tough examination of their defensive credentials to get the ball away from danger.
13'
T. Mings gets yellow.
Mings loses out to Pereira and has to bring him down on the right edge of the box. He goes into the book for the challenge.
8'
Elmohamady surges forward and plays a cross-field pass to Grealish. The midfielder works it on towards the run of El Ghazi on the charge down the left inside channel, but he sees his cross diverted behind by Evans.
6'
BLOCK! Targett breaks forward from the back to win a corner. McGinn and Grealish combine from the set-piece to create a shooting opportunity for the latter, but his effort is blocked by Pereira at the near post.
5'
Evans concedes a corner and the resulting delivery from Grealish has Schmeichel in trouble. The Dane bobbles the cross in his hands, but the referee awards a free-kick to the visitors for a foul on the keeper by Konsa.
1'
We're underway at Villa Park.
Villa apply an immediate press on Leicester in possession, which results in a foul by Douglas Luiz on Evans in the Foxes box.
Good afternoon and welcome to the live commentary of the Premier League clash between Aston Villa and Leicester City at Villa Park.
Villa are just outside of the relegation zone in the Premier League on goal difference, leaving the club in a precarious position to say the least. Dean Smith's side have been inconsistent throughout the term, failing to string together a series of results that would ease the pressure. They suffered a 2-1 defeat during the week at the hands of Chelsea, despite putting in a decent performance. Villa will need to rise to the occasion once more to cope with a rampant Leicester team.
Leicester will have watched Liverpool brush aside Bournemouth yesterday with ease, but also Manchester City's defeat in the Manchester derby. The Foxes are the Reds' main rivals for the Premier League crown this term and Brendan Rodgers will be determined to keep up the pressure on his former club. They've won their last eight matches on the bounce in all competitions, keeping five clean sheets in the process. However, they cannot falter and allow Liverpool to extend their already significant lead at the top of the table.
ASTON VILLA SUBS: Henri Lansbury, Conor Hourihane, Trezeguet, Bjorn Engels, Frederic Guilbert, Orjan Nyland, Jonathan Kodjia.
LEICESTER CITY SUBS: James Justin, Wes Morgan, Demarai Gray, Marc Albrighton, Danny Ward, Harvey Barnes, Ayoze Perez.
LEICESTER CITY (4-3-3: Kasper Schmeichel; Ricardo Pereira, Jonny Evans, Caglar Soyuncu, Ben Chilwell; Wilfred Ndidi, Dennis Praet, Youri Tielemans; James Maddison, Kelechi Iheanacho, Jamie Vardy.
ASTON VILLA (4-1-4-1): Tom Heaton; Ahmed Elmohamady, Ezri Konsa, Tyrone Mings, Matt Targett; Marvelous Nakamba; Anwar El Ghazi, Douglas Luiz, John McGinn, Jack Grealish; Wesley.
Villa needed something to go their way before the half-time whistle. They did have a couple of good moments in the opening period as Anwar El Ghazi struck the bar before seeing another header travel over the bar. Grealish's strike has given them a foothold, but they have to improve at the back to avoid conceding further goals this afternoon.
Thanks for joining our commentary this afternoon. Until next time, goodbye.
Villa face Sheffield United on the road in a crucial clash next week, while Leicester are at home to Norwich City.
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