It was 25 years ago that Manchester United inflicted the Premier League’s first-ever 9-0 defeat on a struggling Ipswich Town. Now, 25 years on, Brendan Rodgers’ Leicester City side have rewritten the history books. After playing in a game that is sure to go down in Premier League folklore, Leicester City have risen to the second place on the table, albeit temporarily.
It was the biggest ever Premier League away win and it had everything – two hat-tricks from two different players, a penalty in the final seconds, a special free-kick goal and most interestingly, a first-half red card to Ryan Bertrand that was awarded by VAR. Ayoze Perez and Jamie Vardy both took full advantage of the situation at hand and scored six goals between them. Ben Chilwell, James Maddison and Youri Tielemans rounded up all of the Foxes’ scorers.
Here are the Leicester City player ratings from what is assured to be a historic Premier League tie:
Kasper Schmeichel – 7
The Foxes’ dominance began in the first half and went on until the final whistle. Whatever little firepower the Saints could conjure up on the night was easily doused by the assured hands of the Dane.
Ricardo Pereira – 8
Kept bombarding down the flank whenever the opportunity presented itself as he didn’t have much to do defensively. Had an extremely comfortable ninety minutes with no real moments of fuss.
Jonny Evans – 7
Like his partner in defence, had nothing to do all game and probably had a more relaxed evening than any Southampton fan at the St.Mary’s stadium on the night.
Çaglar Söyüncü – 7.5
Was untroubled for massive parts of the game and even had the time and space to step up and play from the back. Will be posed a more significant threat in their next fixture.
Ben Chilwell – 9.5
Although both Jamie Vardy and Ayoze Perez got hat-tricks on the night, Ben Chilwell was still a solid shout for man of the match. The Saints just couldn’t deal with his powerful running, as he got himself a goal and a couple of assists as well.
Wilfried Ndidi – 8
After the hosts went down to 10 men, Ndidi began to take control of the tempo. His passing and constant movement in the middle of the park caused a shook Saints midfield all kinds of problems.
Ayoze Perez – 10
The Spaniard was yet to score his first goal for the Foxes prior to this fixture. He opened his account in style by notching up a delicious hat-trick, all in the space of less than 40 minutes.
Youri Tielemans – 9
Like the rest of the Foxes attackers, the Belgian international also had a spectacular game. He stepped up when it mattered and broke the deadlock in the first half, right before Bertrand was sent off.
James Maddison – 9
The youngster’s stock is absolutely skyrocketing right now and for a good reason. To top off an extraordinary victory for the Foxes, Maddison scored what can only be described as a special free-kick.
Harvey Barnes – 9
Was all over the Southampton defenders in the first-half but toned down his intensity in the second. He was brought off in the 72nd minute, but only to give Marc Albrighton a run out.
Jamie Vardy – 10
The English veteran has scored more league goals than anybody since Brendan Rodgers took over at Leicester. He kept that impressive run going with another hat-trick added to the list, coming with the last kick of the game.
Substitutes
Marc Albrighton – 7
Showcased his energy on the ball with some good forward runs. Kept the Foxes moving with some solid short passing as well.
Demarai Gray – 7
The youngster was thrown on, presumably to gain some much-needed experience. Did well after coming on and enjoyed himself out on the pitch.
