April 23, (THEWILL) – On Saturday, Leicester and Aston Villa, put up a fair, yet uninspiring effort in their Premier League match, as a deplorable lack of quality in the final third left the score at 0-0 at the King Power Stadium.
The scrappy nature of the fixture was evident in the statistics that showed that both goalkeepers were mostly untested as shots flew wide and crosses were over-hit, ensuring that there really was nothing for the fans of both teams to be fired up about.
Leon Bailey had the game’s first great chance after an end-to-end start. Wesley Fofana was beaten by Ollie Watkins, who drew the ball back to the Jamaican winger, only for Bailey to rocket his shot way over the bar.
Leicester gradually gained control of the game, but neither team could get a goal going. The Foxes came closest in the first 45 minutes of the encounter.
At just 20 minutes in, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s sublime effort offered James Justin a golden opportunity, which the right-back could not take advantage of, following Bailey’s lead and skying his shot.
The first half was not exactly dull, but neither team managed more than one shot on goal throughout.
With Watkins threatening to cause so many difficulties, Villa started well in the second half. Caglar Soyuncu forced him to slice a decent chance across the six-yard box and away from goal after he was bested by Fofana.
Steven Gerrard’s side had a flurry of efforts on goal in a few frantic scrambles as they tried to force their way into the lead, but Kasper Schmeichel never seemed concerned.
Leicester controlled the most of possession, much like in the first half, but nothing was really occurring. Dewsbury-Hall gave himself an inch of space on the edge of the box, but he fired his effort high and wide, summarising exactly how the 70 minutes of the game had gone.
With 10 minutes remaining, we almost had something to cheer about when James Maddison’s free-kick curled around the wall and produced a great stop from Emiliano Martinez, but it was the kind of shot that any goalkeeper could have saved.
Emiliano Buendia also struck from distance, forcing Schmeichel to dive full length, but he was able to comfortably watch the ball fly wide of his post. Again.
Stoppage time was spent exchanging useless fouls in a twisted attempt to extend this uninspiring match, but thankfully, the clock caught up with them and the referee called the game to a stop.
Villa’s first goalless draw of the season puts a stop to their four-match losing streak, while Leicester’s three-match winning streak at home comes to an end. However, neither team advances in the table, with Leicester remaining in 10th position with 42 points and Villa in 15th place with five points and five places below them.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
