Fantastic Foxes march on as spirited Swans beaten 

After going ahead through Matt Grimes’ rasping volley midway through the first half the visitors would crucially level on the stroke of half-time with Jannik Vestergaard’s close range tap in. 

The Swans would hit the woodwork twice in a spirited showing, but the visitors would show their class in the second half scoring twice through Abdul Fatawu and substitute Kelechi Iheanacho to claim all three points. 

Having won their last four league games. The match with the Foxes would bring Michael Duff’s in-form Swans side together with the league leaders sporting a perfect away record of five wins in as many games. 

Aside from the long-term injury casualties of Josh Ginnelly, Nathan Wood, Azeem Abdulai and Joe Allen, the Swans boss had a fully fit squad to choose from. 

The Northern-Irishman would keep an unchanged starting lineup with wing-back Kristian Pederson returning to the substitutes bench after a two-game absence. 

Visitors Leicester had been in imperious form, winning 10 out of their 11 Championship fixtures since former Man City assistant manager Enzo Maresca was installed at the helm at the King Power Stadium in the summer. 

After rotating his side for the 2-0 win over Stoke before the international break, the Italian welcomed back regulars Wilfred Ndidi, James Justin, Stephy Mavididi and the prolific Jamie Vardy to his preferred eleven as with four-goal Kelechi Iheanacho left on the bench littered with Premier League experience. 

It would be the away side that had the best of the opening exchanges fashioning the first effort towards goal. Ndidi stealing the ball in midfield before an intricate move involving Vardy and Dewsbury-Hall would see Harry Winks bending an effort just over the Swansea goal. 

The Swans, however, would give us good as they got in a competitive half. Comfortable on the ball, midfield creators Grimes and Charlie Patino would link before almost finding the well-timed run of forward Jerry Yates. Mads Hermansen in the Leicester goal though would be alert to the danger to intercept and break the attack. 

The Swans would build a spell of pressure and would be rewarded midway through the first period taking a surprise lead with captain Grimes spectacularly scoring his third goal of the season. 

The Leicester defense under pressure would fail to clear their lines sufficiently from a corner with the ball only going as far as the edge of the penalty area. Grimes with perfect technique would connect beautifully with a left-foot rasping volley that would fly past a despairing Hermansen into the bottom right-hand corner. 

The goal would shake Leicester into a response with their play showing more of a sense of direct urgency. Mavididi finding space down the right flashing a low cross across the face of goal which would evade everyone allowing the Swans to clear. 

Rushworth would be the busier of the two goalkeepers having to deal with an onslaught of crosses as the visitors pressed high on the Swans defense. 

Dewsbury-Hall would then come close with a cross-come shot which would be dragged just wide of the Swans goalkeeper’s post after Winks had shown good vision to pick out his midfield partner.  

The latter would be lively and would have a potshot of his own on the turn, but the effort would go straight into the hands of the on-loan Brighton man from the edge of the area as the visitors looked the more likely without creating a clear-cut opportunity. 

Then would come the decisive moment in the half as Leicester would level the scoreline on the stroke of half-time. A corner from the left would be met by the head of Belgian defender Wout Faes but would go straight into the midriff of a Swansea defender. With Rushworth down on the ground, Vestergaard would be first to react, tapping into an empty net. 

The Swans responded and could have regained their lead before the break instantly in the next phase of play. Liam Cullen picking the ball up on the right before unleashing a 25-yard left-foot thunderbolt which crashed into the woodwork via a deflection. The resulting corner also nearly proved fruitful for the home team with Harry Darling’s header exposing the Foxes’ problems on set-pieces. The former MK Dons defender though missing the target when well placed. 

Leicester would dictate the play in the early stages of the second half looking to push Swansea back deep into their own half. Mavididi almost benefiting from neat work from Ndidi and Vardy but would drag his shot across the goal when well placed on the left-hand side. 

The visitors would control the play at times and despite the Swans having moments would take the lead for the first time. Fatatwu crashing an effort into the top corner past Rushworth after Dewsbury-Hall’s pin-point cross had picked out the Ghanaian international winger at the back post. 

With the Foxes in full swing, it looked like a matter of time before they scored a critical third goal. The Swans would be in debt to Rushworth to deny Vardy when through on goal to get a hand on a through ball, whilst Ndidi would miss a guilt-edged opportunity when well-placed minutes later.  

The Swans though would weather the storm and almost leveled as the game entered its last fifteen minutes with Paterson having an effort blocked last-ditch by Faes in the Leicester defense. 

Jamaican forward Lowe would then pull a diving stop from Hermansen, curling an effort from 25-yard towards the bottom corner as the crowd started to sense a comeback. 

Hopes ended though for the home side with five minutes to go with the visitors catching the Swans on the counter attack to score. Substitute Iheanacho slotting past Rushworth after being played through with Swans committing numbers in the opposition half. 

Leicester would then play the remainder of time out to secure their 11^th win of the season and end Swansea’s recent run of good form. 

Swansea City X1 

Carl Rushworth, Josh Key, Josh Tymon, Harry Darling, Bashir Humphreys, Matt Grimes (captain), Charlie Patino (Jay Fulton 67), Jamal Lowe (Liam Walsh 79), Liam Cullen (Kristian Pederson 67), Jamie Paterson (Ollie Cooper 79), Jerry Yates (Mykola Kuharevich 90).  

Leicester City X1 

Mads Hermansen, James Justin (Hamza Choudhury 90), Ricardo Pereira (Connor Coady 90), Wout Faes, Jannik Vestergaard, Harry Winks, Wilfred Ndidi, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Stephy Mavididi, Jamie Vardy (captain) (Kelechi Iheanacho 83), Abdul Fatawu (Yonus Akgun 65). 

[Lead image: Swansea City FC]