Vardy’s 100th Premier League Goal – On This Day In 2020
The stands at King Power Stadium may have been empty as Leicester City took to the field against Crystal Palace on 4 July, 2020, due to COVID-19 safety measures, but that did not stop it turning into a memorable day for the Foxes No.9.
Brendan Rodgers’ side had lost to Everton last time out, drawing against Brighton & Hove Albion and Watford in their previous two games, the latter the first since the league restarted during the pandemic.
The home side would get back to winning ways against the Eagles, though, courtesy of a Kelechi Iheanacho strike and a late double from Vardy, the first of which brought up a Premier League milestone that no Leicester player had previously – or since – reached.
He became the 28th player to join the 100 Club since the division’s inception in 1992 when Harvey Barnes capitalised on a defensive error to set up the Sheffield-born striker for a tap-in and one of the easiest of his 100 goals.
Speaking shortly after achieving the feat, Vardy revealed that the significance of being a Premier League centurion will only truly hit home once he retires from playing.
“It’s a massive achievement but it’s one of those, yes you’ve done it, but it’s all about the next game then, so you don’t really get time to have it sink in,” the Club's all-time record Premier League goalscorer said.
“It’s probably something that, when I finish football, I can look back on it and actually realise what it means. The season finishes and you get away to forget about football for a few weeks and then you’re straight back in to start the next season. So it’s all about constantly going and going.”
Scored with 13 minutes remaining, there was still time for Vardy to add a second in stoppage time and further contribute to a comprehensive 3-0 success on Filbert Way.
City’s manager was also quick to congratulate him, thrilled to see the former non-league hero achieve yet more history with the Foxes, with 30 of those first 101 Premier League goals coming during Rodgers’ tenure at King Power Stadium up until that point. He is now on 133 Premier League goals.
The Northern Irishman told LCFC TV post-match: "It's an incredible achievement. I've said earlier that to come into the Premier League at that age and now to get over 100 goals, it's a remarkable performance level. There's many more to come from him.
"He's a pleasure to work with. He's a real catalyst for our team and you see there, right at the very end, his speed and that is very important to this team. I'm delighted for him and his family. It's a great achievement."
The 2020/21 season concluded with yet another first as he took home the Premier League Golden Boot award. Then 33, he became the oldest player to claim it, by scoring 23 goals across the campaign. Despite injuries last term, City's No.9 still netted another 15 top-flight goals.