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Jamie Vardy has done it again. Mike Egerton
AS IT HAPPENED

As it happened: Manchester United v Leicester City, Barclay's Premier League

Could Jamie Vardy beat Ruud van Nistlerooy’s long-standing Premier League goal-scoring record?

Hello and welcome to our coverage of tonight’s Barclay’s Premier League clash between Manchester United and table-toppers Leicester City (though the result of the Manchester City v Southampton game will have a say on that).

This game posses a number of intriguing questions.

Can Jamie Vardy continue his fine goal-scoring form for the Foxes and break Ruud van Nistelrooy’s record by netting for an 11th consecutive Premier League game?

Or will United’s defence, one that has kept four clean sheets in their last five league fixtures, hold firm?

We’ll have team news soon.

Here are your starting XIs:

Manchester United: De Gea, Darmian, McNair, Smalling, Blind, Carrick, Schweinsteiger, Mata, Young, Rooney, Martial.

Subs: Romero, Borthwick-Jackson, Fellaini, Memphis, Pereira, Schneiderlin, Rashford

Leicester City: Schmeichel; Simpson, Huth, Morgan, Fuchs; Mahrez, Kanté, Drinkwater, Albrighton; Okazaki, Vardy.

Subs: De Laet, King, Schlupp, Ulloa, Dyer, Schwarzer, Inler.

There’s been so many goals in the early games you just know this is destined to finish 0-0. If, it happens to be a ten-goal thriller, I reserve the right to go back in and delete this particular entry.

Here are the rest of today’s Premier League results:

Just 10 minutes to kick off. Where’s your money going?


Poll Results:

Draw (272)
Manchester United (194)
Leicester City (193)

And we’re under way at the King Power Stadium with Manchester United kicking off.

United looked like they were going to set up with five at the back but it appears to be just four in the opening three minutes.

Actually, that’s changed again now with Blind, McNair and Smalling making up a back three, Young and Darmian as wing backs.

That’ll probably change again in a few minutes.

We’re very much in the ‘feeling each other out’ stage of this game, little in the way of attacking threat. United do win the game’s first corner but it’s dealt with relatively comfortably by the home side.

Rooney does stab a shot on target but Schmeichel deals with it very easily.

Leicester win their first corner on 12 minutes but it goes out for a throw in on the opposite side of the field. Yep, it was that bad.

Not quite as bad as Martin Tyler’s little Beatles riff on the age of both managers mind.

Yellow – Ashley Young picks up the game’s first booking for a foul on Mahrez as Leicester looked to counter-attack.

That Beatles reference:

United have 62% possession but you wouldn’t say they looked like they were threatening to open the scoring in the first 15 minutes.

GOAL! Leicester City 1-0 Manchester United – Jamie Vardy

I assume everyone had Jamie Vardy as first goalscorer? That’s the Premier League record of 11 games in a row. Ashley Young won’t want to see his role in that goal again. Awful.

Chance – A real opportunity for Leicester to double their lead but Okazaki can’t quite control it on his chest and the chance goes a begging.

Some fairly tame appeals for a penalty there from the away side as Rooney goes down in the area but it was one of those, not a dive, not a penalty coming togethers and the referee rightly waves play on.

Chance – Really good run from Martial along the touchline wins United a corner but Rooney’s head hits the turf a yard from where it made contact with his head.

Here’s Vardy celebrating his record-breaking goal:

Mike Egerton Mike Egerton

GOAL! Leicester City 1-1 Manchester United, Bastian Schweinsteiger

United finally make a corner work and their German midfielder equalises with his head right at the end of the first half.

Half-time – Leicester City 1-1 Manchester United

And the second half is under way.

Chance – Great opportunity for Leicester to restore their lead but, with Vardy alone in the box, Albrighton’s cross is very, very poor.

CLOSE - Schweinsteiger almost doubles his total for the day with a header from an Ashley Young cross. The rebound sees Wayne Rooney offside.

The game — which wasn’t the best anyway — has really gone stale in the last ten minutes. Basic mistakes from both sides. Ashley Young’s deliveries do look like they’ll be the source of a second United goal if comes.

Sub:  Leonardo Ulloa replaces Okazaki for Leicester.

It looks like United are getting ready to bring on Memphis. An ineffectual Rooney surely the one to make way?

CLOSE – Leicester catch United on the counter-attack but for some reason don’t pass the ball to a wide open Vardy. Instead Ulloa gets the ball caught under his feet and David de Gea makes the save.

Subs: And it is Rooney who has got the hook. Memphis has 20 minutes to make a difference for the visitors.

Leicester also make a change with Schlupp replacing Albrighton.

Sub: Richie De Laet, ex of the Manchester United parish, is on for Leicester, Simpson making way.

Neither team exactly playing for the win at the moment, lots of possession for Manchester United in the middle third of the field without doing anything with it.

They both have the opportunity to go top of the table with three points so it’s surprising we’re not seeing more attacking intent.

There’ll be two minutes of stoppage time.

Close - Darmian catches it on the bounce from the edge of the 18-yard box but his shot is always curling left and wide. Was that the final chance?

Full-time – Leicester City 1-1 Manchester United

And with that result, three points separate the top four (and one the top three) but it didn’t exactly have the feel of a top of the table clash.

1-1 probably a fair result though.

And that’s it from me. Thanks as always for joining in.

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