Matchday Live Talking Points: The Force Is With Leicester, Tactical Shifts & Iheanacho's Impact
Speaking live on air at the conclusion of LCFC Radio's matchday coverage, which is available for free, the commentary and punditry team heaped praise on Brendan Rodgers' men.
After watching City dispatch the Toffees, courtesy of Jamie Vardy's 13th goal of the season and a last-gasp winner from Kelechi Iheanacho, the LCFC Radio quartet picked out their biggest headlines...
The force is with Leicester!
Matt Elliott said: “What drama at the end! To be honest, I didn’t really see it coming. Gerry mentioned on commentary after about 89 minutes, he said: ‘This isn’t over yet’. But it seemed as if that was the case. It looked like being one of those days, Everton gave it their all, and in some ways, even though Leicester were the better team, you couldn’t begrudge them a point, but it wasn’t to be. The force is with Leicester!”
Credit to the referee
Tony Cottee said: “I’m going to give the referee, Graham Scott, praise because, as I’m watching the action happen in front of me, when the ball is played forward to Iheanacho, the assistant very quickly puts his flag up. The referee looked at the assistant and he looked like he was about to blow up, and then obviously they would’ve had to disallow the goal, but he’s let the play run on and VAR are able to allow the goal.”
City just keep going
Gerry Taggart said: “You can’t underestimate the quality Everton have in their team. Leicester City’s players just keep going, though, don’t they? They just don’t know when they beaten, they keep going right to the death. Everton were also still going for it later on so it was one of those ding-dong games, but Leicester showed that quality right at the end. The intention was there and they got their rewards.”
Rodgers' tactical shift pays off
Nev Foulger said: “You’ve got to congratulate Brendan Rodgers. Tactically, he wanted to split Everton’s three centre-backs and he did it by bringing on Iheanacho. The great thing for me, when he scored, and the goal was finally given… the celebration from the other players towards Iheanacho was terrific. You could see that the rest of the squad were thrilled for Iheanacho for earning the points for his side.”
Iheanacho's impact
Tony Cottee said: “Fair play to Iheanacho. I know the hardest thing as a forward is getting that consistency to get a run of form and then scoring the goal when you get a chance. He kept his head down, he buried it into the corner. What a finish to the game and it was Iheanacho who sealed a great three points. There were a few little flicks in there as well for the goal and you have to say he made a real impact in the game.”
An emotional moment
Gerry Taggart said: “It was quite remarkable. If it had been a 2-0 or 3-0 win, you wouldn’t have had those scenes at full-time. The sheer size of what was hanging on it, for both teams, was seen in those celebrations. The reactions were quite remarkable and the eruption in the stadium was just fantastic. You were sat there watching the future unfold and it was a very emotional moment, you have to say.”
Adjusting to VAR
Matt Elliott said: “People are still adjusting to VAR. it certainly brings drama! People are still getting accustomed to it and how it operates. Iheanacho has to take a lot of credit for finishing it in the way he did as well. The golden rule is: play to the whistle. When we had that realisation that he was onside, we were in the studio, and it all just sunk in. ‘Leicester are going to win this!’”