Steve Cooper’s first competitive game as Leicester City manager ended in a respectable draw as Tottenham Hotspur were held 1-1 at the King Power.
Leicester City were boosted ahead of their Premier League return with new signing Ollie Skipp unveiled prior to kick-off.
However, the positive feeling in the King Power soon dissipated as Tottenham settled into a game of attack versus defence with Leicester struggling to get out.
In truth, it looked simply a matter of time before Spurs took the lead from the very first whistle as Steve Cooper‘s side camped in deep in their half.
The only surprise was that it took 29 minutes for the deadlock to be broken as former Leicester midfielder James Maddison picked out Pedro Porro who glanced a header past Mads Hermansen in the Foxes’ goal.
After a tough first-half Leicester were handed a lifeline through their one meaningful attack of the game up until the 57th minute as Jamie Vardy proved age is just a number by heading Leicester level at 37-years-old.
Leicester looked a different side after the goal, suddenly winning second balls and imposing themselves on Tottenham as they battled to a point at home to start the new season.
Leicester City player ratings against Tottenham Hotspur
Mads Hermansen – 7
Saw his goal peppered throughout, facing seven shots on target, and could do little about Pedro Porro’s goal.
Struggled to find his range with his kicking which was a surprise after being so involved in Leicester’s passing game last season.
James Justin – 6
Had the unenviable task of dealing with Heung-Min Son and Destiny Udogie down the Spurs left and did what he could to stop wave after wave of attack as Tottenham favoured that side.
Constantly remained switched on to the threat at the back post from crosses from the Spurs right and kept his focus throughout.
Jannik Vestergaard – 5
Selected ahead of Caleb Okoli to reprise his defensive partnership with Wout Faes and started by wildly diving in to a challenge he was nowhere near making.
Had another nervous moment as Dominic Solanke went down under his challenge in the box but just about got a touch on the ball.
Can’t afford to be as rash as he was against Spurs this season and his lack of pace could prove costly at the top level.
Wout Faes – 6
Leicester are going to need Faes to be at his best on a weekly basis if they are to have any chance of surviving in the top flight this season.
Handled Solanke well and was assured as Leicester survived intense first-half pressure.
Victor Kristiansen – 6
The man who spent last season on loan at Genoa handled Brennan Johnson and Pedro Porro relatively well in the first 45 minutes with Porro’s opener coming from a central area.
Delivered a wicked ball across the face of goal in the build up to Leicester’s goal and showed he could be a decent player for Cooper this season.
Harry Winks – 5
Tidy enough with the ball as you would expect but struggled to impose himself on the Tottenham midfield three.
His composure will be important to Leicester this year but was often less with no real option for a pass.
Wilfred Ndidi – 6
The opposite of Winks in that he was good defensively but very poor with the ball.
Vital clearance to stop a certain goal after just six minutes from a player Leicester will need to sniff out danger all season long.
Tried to get his teeth into the Spurs midfield but he and Winks were constantly outnumbered in the middle of the park.
Has returned to his destroyer role under Cooper having played further forward last season under Enzo Maresca but saw a late header well saved by Guglielmo Vicario.
Abdul Fatawu – 6.5
Got very little joy in an attacking sense in the first half but worked hard to help Justin defensively.
Picked out Vardy with a delightful cross for the veteran striker to score the equaliser and should build on his Premier League debut.
Facundo Buonanotte – 8
Played in the number ten position off of Vardy in his first appearance for his loan club and showed a glimpse of what to expect with some neat early touches and a couple of clever nutmegs.
Helped his side by winning free-kicks to relieve the pressure and looked a player who can make the difference for Leicester.
The standout player for Cooper and the biggest positive of the night.
Bobby De Cordova-Reid – 4
Worked hard for his new side but switched off for a split second which proved fatal as Porro scored the opener.
Struggled to make an impact in an attacking sense even once Leicester improved in the second-half on a debut to forget for the 31-year-old.
Jamie Vardy – 7
Gave Leicester a real boost as he declared himself fit for this one despite playing just once in pre-season.
Fed off scraps before inevitably scoring Leicester’s first goal of the campaign with the chance falling to the right player.
Missed a golden chance as he was played through to go one-v-one with Vicario but fired straight at the onrushing goalkeeper.
At 37 and with Daka injured, Leicester will need Vardy to continue to lead the line but Cooper could do with another option up top.
Substitutes:
Stephy Mavididi – 6
Boubakary Soumare – 5
Kasey McAteer – 5
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