Premier League
Liverpool
Dec 26, 2015 3.00pm
1
0
HT : 0 0
FT
Leicester
  • Adam Lallana 45' yellowcard
  • Emre Can 53' yellowcard
  • Christian Benteke 63' goal
  • yellowcard Robert Huth 62'

Live Commentary: Liverpool 1-0 Leicester City - as it happened

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Liverpool 1-0 Leicester City - as it happened
© AFP

Leicester City travelled to Liverpool top of the table at Christmas 12 months after they sat bottom of the pile for the festive period.

The Foxes were on a high, but they could not make it back-to-back wins on Merseyside as Liverpool became the first team to stop them scoring and beat Claudio Ranieri's side at home.

Read about Christian Benteke's winner and the rest of the Boxing Day contest with Sports Mole's minute-by-minute updates below.

5.01pmThat's all we've got time for on this commentary, but I'll leave you with our match report and kindly point you in the direction of our Newcastle-Everton commentary. Kickoff at St James' at half 5.

4.59pmWhat a massive result for Liverpool. They end Leicester's 10-match unbeaten run in the league, become the first team to beat them at home in the league and also are the first defence to keep them out this season.

© Getty Images

4.56pmWhat a finish at Anfield! Liverpool should have made it more comfortable in the final few seconds, but Benteke somehow didn't score with Schmeichel out of goal trying to make a difference at the other end. Leicester had one outfield player back and somehow it was stopped.

90+6 minFULL-TIME: LIVERPOOL 1-0 LEICESTER

90+3 minLIVERPOOL SUB: Can the Reds hold on? Another defensive midfielder in Joe Allen is on for Lallana.

90+1 minLIVERPOOL SUB: Just after four minutes of added time are signalled, Klopp brings on Lucas for Coutinho.

89 minBLOCK! And the Foxes almost equalise! Fuchs's long throws have caused problems all day and this one is flicked on to King, who connects well on the volley. The ball seems to be heading in, but Can is there to make a vital block.

88 minHenderson makes a real mess of a cutback with both Coutinho and Benteke waiting to put the game to bed. Leicester are still in this!

87 minLiverpool's other Brazilian, Firmino, is the next to try his luck. The ball is bouncing inviting and his left-foot volley bounces a yard or so wide.

84 minSHOT! Coutinho so close to a wonderstrike to settle it. The Brazilian let fly from distance and Schmeichel could only watch as the ball missed the crossbar by about a centimetre.

82 minCLOSE! Leicester have scored so many great goals this season, but they almost equalise with an ugly one as Fuchs's long throw bobbles around in the area before Mignolet clutches the ball gratefully to his chest. That could have gone anywhere!

80 minLEICESTER SUB: Well well, Mahrez and Vardy are both now off with Leicester chasing the game. The former is replaced by Andrej Kramaric.

79 minI honestly have no idea how Lovren has not been booked today. He's committed several fouls and some of them were yellow-card worthy on their own. He must have got Atkinson a very nice Christmas present.

78 minCan advances with the ball from midfield and he's got loads of space to shoot. He can't produce a good attempt though as the ball goes high and wide.

75 minAlbrighton curls over the resulting corner and Mignolet flaps at it unconvincingly, but fortunately for the hosts it drifts across and out of play.

74 minSAVE! Mignolet called into action for the first time since the end of the first half as Fuchs's low cross is turned goalwards by Dyer. A good effort from the Leicester sub, but not good enough.

73 minBenteke celebrates his fifth league goal of the season, which makes him the Reds' joint-top marksman in the Premier League

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71 minA corner for Leicester and a chance for Fuchs to put in a good delivery, but the left-back's inswinger lands on the roof of the net.

69 minLEICESTER SUBS: A double sub from Ranieri as he brings on Leonardo Ulloa and Nathan Dyer for the front two, Okazaki and Vardy. The latter has been very quiet today and maybe wasn't quite 100% fit.

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66 minFull o' beans now, Benteke is in search of a second. Coutinho finds the Belgian and his curling effort flies just wide, but it wouldn't have counted as the offside flag was up.

63 minDeadlock broken at Anfield and it's the substitute who delivers! It's a fine first-time finish on the half-volley from Benteke after neat work down the left from Firmino. Can Leicester produce yet another fightback? They're going to have to to preserve their unbeaten away record.

63 minGOAL! LIVERPOOL 1-0 LEICESTER (CHRISTIAN BENTEKE)

62 minBOOKING! Huth is the first Leicester player booked for tugging back Lallana. Considering what Lovren got away with in the first half, that's harsh.

60 minCHANCE! Decent chance this for Benteke as Henderson curls over a brilliant first-time cross from the right. It's maybe a tad too high for the Belgian, who can't direct his header down.

58 minExcellent defending from Leicester captain Morgan as he gets his foot in to stab Firmino's low cross away from danger.

54 minIt seems that Vardy will be able to continue, while up the other end Benteke has just spurned a chance to find a teammate after being picked out on the left of the area.

53 minBOOKING! Atkinson played advantage, but has now gone back and booked Can for the challenge.

52 minWorrying moment here for Leicester as Vardy stays down after a sliding challenge from behind by Can. He's been quiet today, but Leicester will want him to stay on.

49 minThis afternoon's attendance at Anfield is 44,123.

46 minA shot on target right at the start of the second half for Vardy, but he scuffs a difficult first-time left-foot volley that bobbles slowly through to Mignolet.

46 minKICKOFF! We're back underway, with no half-time substitutions from either manager.

4.01pmClick here to see the live Premier League table, with Leicester three clear at the top as it stands. What that means is an Arsenal win later would put the Gunners top on goal difference.

3.58pmThe only goal there that I haven't told you about so far is West Ham's at Villa. It came from Aaron Cresswell, who I spectacularly transferred in on fantasy football this week 😄

3.57pmHALF-TIME SCORES: Here's how it looks elsewhere in the 3pm Premier League kickoffs:

Villa 0-1 West Ham, Bournemouth 0-0 Palace, Chelsea 1-1 Watford, Man City 3-0 Sunderland, Swansea 1-0 West Brom, Spurs 2-0 Norwich

3.52pmAny stats you might be reading elsewhere about this game and the rest of the Premier League are wrong - it seems that there is a problem with Opta this afternoon. Both teams have had shots on target, despite what TV stations might be saying.

3.49pmNo goals at Anfield, but it's been a very watchable half of football. Liverpool have had more of the chances, but Leicester have gone close through Mahrez and maybe should have had a penalty when Sakho clumsily tackled Okazaki.

45+3 minHALF-TIME: LIVERPOOL 0-0 LEICESTER

45+1 minBOOKING! Lovren somehow hasn't been booked after cynically breaking up another Leicester attack. Lallana is, though, for not retreating 10 yards.

45+1 minJust after two minutes of added time are indicated, Coutinho's inswinger is headed out by King.

45 minMorgan clumsily bumps into Benteke when the Belgian was running away from goal. It's clever from Benteke and Morgan has to sharper. Chance for Liverpool to put the ball in the box with the half coming to a close...

3.44pmUPDATE: Spurs lead Norwich 2-0 thanks to a Harry Kane brace, while it's Chelsea 1-1 Watford at Stamford Bridge. Diego Costa broke the deadlock, but Troy Deeney has just hit back with a penalty.

42 minSAVE! Mignolet palms the ball over after Mahrez did brilliantly on the edge of the box to dribble past two players and lash a shot at goal. My word that boy has got some good feet.

39 minThat's excellent defending from Lovren as he beats Albrigton to the ball down the Leicester left and keeps the ball in with his slide tackle. Had the Foxes winger got there first, Leicester were away.

38 minLIVERPOOL SUB: Origi had been bright, but his afternoon is over as he trudges off injured. Liverpool have a good replacement in Benteke and you'd think that he'll be keen to impress after seemingly falling behind Origi in the strikers' pecking order.

37 minAs I was saying, plenty of action down the Reds' right:

36 minLiverpool have played well so far, but one thing they have to be really wary of is the Leicester counter. A Foxes clearance just now wasn't chased by anyone in blue, but both Liverpool centre-backs were inside the visitors' half.

34 minNot quite sure how Lovren hasn't been booked here. Okazaki was too quick for him and was turning away when the Croat crunched through the back of the striker.

33 minHalf-chance for the Reds as Henderson curls in a free kick that Lovren heads at goal. There's no power on it and Schmeichel holds easily.

31 minMahrez and Vardy have grabbed all the headlines with their goals and assists this term, but Kante has been a superstar in midfield for Leicester. We've just seen the best of him in the middle of the park with some really tenacious tackling.

28 minA first opening for the league's top scorer Vardy, who has 15 in 17 this season and of course had that incredible run of 11 games in a row with a goal. Albrighton's cross is loopy and Vardy only manages to head over the top.

26 minLeicester are struggling to deal with Liverpool's high pressing at the moment

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24 minCHANCE! Liverpool are all over Leicester at the moment! Origi with the first clear-cut opening and he can't beat Schmeichel at the near post from a tight angle. The Belgian's shot almost found a gap, but the Dane did well in the end.

23 minSAVE! Back to Anfield and we have our first shot on target as Firmino's curler from 20 yards is pushed wide by Schmeichel.

3.22pmUPDATE: Make that 3-0 as Wilfried Bony gets in on the act. City, by the way, unveiled their new club crest today. I don't mind it.

3.20pmUPDATE: There's been a couple of goals at the Etihad and both have been for Manchester City against Sunderland. Raheem Sterling and Yaya Toure on target.

19 minHe'll be pretty pleased with what he's seen so far:

17 minSIDE-NETTING! Liverpool are having some joy down their right-hand side as this time Lallana smacks the ball into the side-netting.

16 minCHANCE! Not the easiest opening, but a chance nonetheless for Coutinho. Origi gets in down the right and his cutback intended for Firmino is behind the number 11, but there's Coutinho arriving and he smashes over from the edge of the area.

15 minHmmmm. Leicester might feel that they should have a penalty. Okazaki receives the ball with his back to goal and he spins around Sakho, who clearly clips the Japanese striker's heels. There's not much of an appeal from the Foxes, but they had a case there!

13 minLeicester look a little shaky defensively early on and they don't exactly have the sternest backline in the division. The reason they're top is their free-flowing attack and never-say-die attitude.

11 minSchmeichel hasn't been recognised as a particularly key player for Leicester this season, but he's been pretty solid...until now! The fizzed corner comes in across the six-yard box and somehow it goes through Schmeichel's gloves. Fortunately for Leicester, there's no Liverpool player to tap home.

10 minGood movement from Origi and his shot at goal is blocked out by Morgan for a Liverpool corner.

3.09pmUPDATE: The first goal in the 3pm kickoffs comes at the Liberty Stadium as struggling Swansea take the lead against West Brom through Ki Sung-Yueng. Give @SM_LiveScores a follow on Twitter for the goals as they go in.

7 minInterestingly, Klopp seems to have told his players to match Leicester's 4-4-2 formation. Origi and Firmino seem to both be playing as strikers, with Coutinho wide left and Lallana wide right. We've seen this season that 4-4-2 is having a bit of a resurgence with Leicester and Watford, in particular, doing so well with two out-and-out strikers.

5 minBeautiful footwork from Mahrez as he beats two Liverpool players on the right wing before his low cross is cleared high and not very far away by Sakho. Surely Liverpool have been told not to dive in on the Algerian magician!

3 minSHOT! Not much to speak of in the first couple of minutes, but Liverpool are the first to threaten as Coutinho takes aim from outside the box and curls an effort a yard or so wide.

0 minKICKOFF! We are underway at Anfield. It's dry on Merseyside at the moment, but very windy.

2.59pmJust before we get underway, let me tell you about the early Boxing Day kickoff and it was another miserable afternoon for Louis van Gaal and Manchester United, who were beaten 2-0 at Stoke City. Liverpool fans will like that, a lot.

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2.57pmKickoff is moments away at Anfield, with Liverpool all in red and Leicester in their home colours of blue today. Here come the two teams out of the tunnel.

2.55pmPREDICTION: Right then, time for my pre-match prediction. Games at Anfield under Klopp haven't been all that exciting for Liverpool and I think this could be a tense affair today. The hosts will do well to stop the Foxes scoring with Vardy and Mahrez playing, but I can't see the visitors running riot. I'll sit on the fence with a 1-1 draw.

2.53pmH2H: Liverpool are unbeaten in six against Leicester, winning four. Last season the Reds won 3-1 at the King Power Stadium at the start of December before being held to a 2-2 draw on New Year's Day.

2.51pmLiverpool come into this match without a win in four matches, failing to score in three of those. There have been some fine performances, especially away from home, since Jurgen Klopp's arrival, but if you look at their results in the league he has done no better than Brendan Rodgers this season. The Reds have won three of nine in the league under Klopp and Rodgers won three out of eight before he was sacked.

2.48pmLast weekend Leicester were also on Merseyside and they beat Everton 3-2 for their seventh win in eight unbeaten games. Riyad Mahrez scored two to make it five in three games and that means that he has a December Premier League record of seven goals in nine games if you include last season. This term he has directly contributed to 20 Leicester goals - only Pierre-Emerick Aubemeyang (22) and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (21) have done more in Europe's top five leagues.

2.46pmLeicester have won 18 of their last 26 Premier League games if you include the end of last season. In the same time, Liverpool have won just eight and lost 10. A record that has well and truly stunned the football world. Bravo!

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2.44pmIt's been said many times already and whatever happens in the 2016 half of the season, it will be said many times more: what a remarkable season Leicester have had. This time last year they were bottom at Christmas and only stayed up thanks to an incredible end-of-season run. Many wondered why Nigel Pearson was sacked after such a great end to the campaign, but his replacement Claudio Ranieri has worked wonders with the Foxes this term. They start the Boxing Day action two points clear of Arsenal at the top and will extend that to five with a win ahead of the Gunners' trip to Southampton later tonight.

2.42pm

2.40pmFor Leicester, Claudio Ranieri makes just the one change and it's not a surprising one as Robert Huth returns from suspension to take his place in central defence. Marcin Wasilewski drops back to the bench.

2.38pmStarting with the men in red, Jurgen Klopp has made three changes to the side that was handsomely beaten 3-0 at Watford last weekend. One of the changes is forced, with Martin Skrtel out of action and Dejan Lovren back in time to replace the Slovak. In goal, Simon Mignolet returns in place of Adam Bogdan, who had a shocker at Vicarage Road, while up front Divock Origi leads the line by replacing midfielder Lucas Leiva.

2.35pmLEICESTER XI: Schmeichel; Simpson, Huth, Morgan, Fuchs; Mahrez, Kante, King, Albrighton; Okazaki, Vardy
Subs: Schwarzer, De Laet, Kramaric, Ulloa, Dyer, Wasilewski, Inler

2.33pmLIVERPOOL XI: Mignolet; Clyne, Lovren, Sakho, Moreno; Can, Henderson; Lallana, Coutinho, Firmino; Origi
Subs: Bogdan, Toure, Benteke, Lucas, Allen, Teixeira, Randall

2.31pmAfternoon all! If you're feeling a bit under the weather after a couple of heavy Christmas days then fear not, SM is here to guide you through the Premier League action. Here we'll be focussing on Liverpool vs. Leicester, perhaps the pick of the seven 3pm kickoffs. Let's get straight to the team news...
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