Jamie Vardy came off the bench to earn Championship leaders Leicester their first victory in three matches, scoring twice in a 2-0 win over Watford.

It had looked like being a half of frustration for the former Premier League Golden Boot winner, after he somehow missed an open goal from four yards out in the 74th minute.

But he called on all of his experience to make sure he was in the right spot just two minutes later to score from close range after Jannik Vestergaard’s header had been parried by Watford goalkeeper Daniel Bachmann.

Vardy then sealed the game three minutes into stoppage time when he was brought down by Bachmann as the Leicester striker raced into the penalty area.

It was a challenge that earned the goalkeeper a second yellow card as he had been booked 10 minutes earlier. Vardy took the spot-kick himself and converted it decisively as defender Ryan Porteus took over in goal.

The result eased the tension among the home fans after Enzo Maresca’s side had failed to score in their previous two games. But, the longer the match went on, the more likely Leicester were to score, and so it proved.

Watford had been content to soak up Leicester’s pressure and try to catch them on the break.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall was City’s biggest threat throughout. After 10 minutes, he found space on the left and delivered a cross into the six-yard box, but none of his team-mates could get on to the end of it as Watford cleared their lines.

Dewsbury-Hall came close in the 29th minute after Kasey McAteer tapped a free-kick to him. The Leicester midfielder shot from 20 yards out, but his effort flew just wide.

Just before half-time, Dewsbury-Hall delivered a cross to the far post but Bachmann smothered McAteer’s chance on the goal-line.

Kelechi Iheanacho picked out Stephy Mavididi after 52 minutes, but his first-time shot only found the side netting, with the Leicester forward clearly annoyed with himself for failing to take advantage of the opening.

Maresca decided to make changes up front, introducing Vardy and Abdul Fatawu as substitutes. But when the two combined to create an opening, Vardy blazed his shot over the bar.

Again, Dewsbury-Hall came close to breaking the deadlock with 20 minutes to go when he turned Ryan Andrews in the Watford area, only to see his left-foot shot strike the near post.

Leicester launched a series of attacks and defender Vestergaard’s header landed on the roof of the net from Ricardo Pereira’s cross.

Vardy missed a clear chance after Mavididi’s run carved out the chance but the former England striker made up for that just minutes later though when Leicester finally got the goal they deserved.

That forced Watford to look for an equaliser and Porteus brought a save from Leicester goalkeeper Mads Hermansen with the visitors’ only shot on target.

Proud Middlesbrough boss Michael Carrick hailed his players for executing their game plan to perfection in a “big win” over Championship leaders Leicester.

Boro usually play possession football but had to change their approach for the visit of the Foxes, who dominated the ball at the Riverside but failed to find a breakthrough against Carrick’s stubborn and organised side.

And after frustrating Enzo Maresca’s visitors, Boro snatched the win late on thanks to Sam Greenwood’s moment of magic. The Leeds loanee scored his fourth goal in six games with a stunning free-kick.

“It was a big win,” said delighted Carrick. “They are a really good team and we knew that.

“Individually, collectively, how they’re coached, they’re a very good team and it’s not an accident that they are where they are in the league.

“We showed a different side to ourselves today with a lot of the out-of-possession work. It was really good pressing and really good defensively. They test you, you have to close certain spaces for the whole game, you have to concentrate for the whole game and that was a major factor.

“The boys got the game plan off to a tee and actually, the few chances we did give away were from us giving the ball away, which we don’t normally do. That’s one of those things though.

“It was an immense effort and I’m so proud of the boys.”

Greenwood is proving himself to be a key player for Middlesbrough and Carrick said of his match winner: “I kind of had a feeling as he stepped up, I fancied him because it looked like it was set up just at the right spot for him.

“It’s a hell of a free-kick. There are not many people who can pull that off, but he’s got that in his locker consistently. It’s a real threat and a real weapon for us.”

Despite a second successive Championship defeat, with Ipswich now level on points, Leicester boss Maresca was not overly concerned and said his players paid the price for missed chances.

Jannik Vestergaard went close in the first half but was denied by a brilliant save from Seny Dieng, before City tried to turn the screw after the break. The closest they came to breaking the deadlock was when Kelechi Iheanacho hit a post 10 minutes from time, before Greenwood claimed the winner three minutes later.

Maresca said: “I think I have been quite clear, we created many chances and many situations where we should score but when you miss, miss, miss and they score a fantastic goal, that’s football.

“It’s a moment where you create but don’t take your chance and the opposite, they score a fantastic goal. It is what it is.

“To be honest I thought we were in control of the game, created five or six clear chances and many situations where we missed the last pass. The players are annoyed because we lost and it’s normal to be like that.”

Leicester will be without Harry Winks for their first game back after the international break against Watford after the midfielder picked up his fifth yellow card of the season.

Maresca said: “For sure Harry will be a big miss but for many games he’s been waiting for one more yellow.”

Championship leaders Leicester suffered their second successive 1-0 defeat after Sam Greenwood settled a tight game with a late stunner to send Middlesbrough into the international break on a high.

Enzo Maresca’s side lost to Leeds last week and Greenwood – on loan at Boro from Elland Road – hit a brilliant free-kick seven minutes from time to lift Michael Carrick’s Boro up to 10th in the table, just two points outside the top six.

Leicester are now only top on goal difference following Ipswich’s win over Swansea.

The Foxes had looked the more likely winners for long spells at the Riverside but could not force a way through Middlesbrough’s organised backline.

There was not much to separate the sides in a hard-fought first half, with both keepers making brilliant saves.

Leicester dominated possession in the opening stages but it was Boro who created the better of the early chances, with Josh Coburn – who bagged a brace in last week’s 3-3 draw at Plymouth – twice going close.

Although the home side did a good job of restricting Leicester, the Foxes did have two good first-half opportunities to break the deadlock.

Maresca’s side were almost gifted an opener when Isaiah Jones’ attempted backpass was intercepted by Kelechi Iheanacho, who stung the hands of home goalkeeper Seny Dieng.

And just after the half-hour mark, Dieng again denied the leaders, making a superb one-handed save to keep out Jannik Vestergaard’s header after a corner from the left.

In the dying seconds of the opening period, it was the turn of Leicester keeper Mads Hermansen. First he got down to his left to tip a low Matt Crooks shot around a post. And from the resulting corner, he clawed out a Dael Fry header that looked destined for the top corner.

Leicester tried to turn the screw in the second half and substitute Abdul Fatawu bounced over a volley from close in after good work down the left from Stephy Mavididi.

Mavididi then had a chance of his own but dragged his left-footed shot wide of the far post, before Iheanacho was gifted an opportunity after a Dieng mistake, only for the keeper to make amends with a fine stop.

Iheanacho beat Dieng with his next chance with just over 10 minutes to play, only to see his delicate chip bounce back off the near post. And moments later, against the run of play, Boro scored what proved to be the winner.

There was initially some anger inside the Riverside when referee Oliver Langford pulled back play for a foul on Greenwood instead of playing the advantage with the home side in the attack and with men over.

But Greenwood lifted himself off the deck to curl home a beautiful free-kick into Hermansen’s top corner.

Leeds manager Daniel Farke felt his side’s 1-0 victory at Championship leaders Leicester was a reward for a performance of “bravery and courage”.

Georginio Rutter’s 57th-minute goal was enough to make sure Leeds closed in on Ipswich in second place, and condemn Leicester to their second home defeat of the season.

Farke praised an impressive display from Leeds, who took the game to Leicester early on and produced what was a statement win at the King Power Stadium.

“We were brave and went for it with courage as a side who have been unbeaten for so long,” said the Leeds manager.

“It was a complex performance on the field, but we stayed disciplined and kept them to areas where they couldn’t hurt us. I believed in my players and that they could dominate the game.

“You could see the goal coming in the second half, it was a deserved win, we had the better chances.

“The only thing Georginio needed to improve was his goal tally. This was a decisive goal and a sign of quality.”

Farke highlighted the fact that Leeds’ players celebrated with goalkeeper Illan Meslier after the game.

The Frenchman produced a superb save to keep out a stoppage-time header from Leicester’s Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.

“If you want to achieve something special, you need unity,” added the German coach. “That is why the players celebrated Illan’s save. He is a diamond, if he continues to produce performances like this we are definitely on the right path, I think he is the best keeper in the league.

“I also felt that Glen Kamara had his best game in a white shirt.

“For us at the moment, the table is not important. Whatever the outcome here, everything would be possible for both sides. But it was a massive three points for us, a great boost. It was a good night for us.

“But Leicester are such a good side, I’m sure at the end of the season they’ll be in a top position.”

Farke admitted he was “disappointed” to be shown a yellow card for protesting against referee Dean Whitestone’s decision to wave away appeals after Crysencio Summerville went down under pressure from Ricardo Pereira.

“It was only my second yellow card in over 200 games in English football,” he said. “I was a bit disappointed, for me it was definitely a foul. Was it a penalty or a free-kick and a red card.  He didn’t whistle anything, it was a decisive moment.”

Leicester had been aiming for a  10th successive win, but they remain 11 points clear of Leeds in third spot.

Abdul Fatawu hit the crossbar in the first half, but Leicester managed only one effort on target during the game.

“I’m happy with the performance, we expected this match in terms of intensity,” said Leicester manager Enzo Maresca.

“They are a very good team, dangerous and good technically. We cannot win all the games. Overall I am happy, defeat is part of the process. It’s a case of what we can do better, and for sure, we can do some things better.

“I felt we deserved something more from the game.”

Maresca said he felt that, while Leeds took the three points, it had been Sunderland in the previous home game that had offered more in the way of tempo.

“Sunderland were more aggressive and more consistent,” said the Italian. “They started in minute one and finished in minute 95.

“Leeds started with intensity in the first half, and they dropped in the last minutes. We were in control for the last half hour. For me, the team that showed more intensity was Sunderland.”

Georginio Rutter earned Leeds a 1-0 victory against Sky Bet Championship leaders Leicester as Daniel Farke’s side took another step towards challenging the top two.

The result still leaves Leicester 11 points clear of Leeds in third place, but this will be seen as a statement victory against a side who have dominated the division this season.

Abdul Fatawu hit the crossbar in the first half, and Leeds goalkeeper Illan Meslier produced a superb save to keep out a stoppage-time header from Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. But Leicester had just one shot on target while suffering their second home defeat of the campaign.

Leicester, five points clear at the top, had been chasing a 10th successive victory and were looking to equal the best-ever start to a second tier season since Bristol City in the 1905-06 season.

But Leeds took on Enzo Maresca’s side head-on. They were rewarded when Rutter netted after 57 minutes with a goal that proved to be the winner.

Leicester found themselves under pressure early on, something they have not been used to at the King Power Stadium this season.

But Leeds, who were also relegated from the Premier League last season, caused Leicester problems and looked in confident mood.

Joel Piroe carved out space in the Leicester area after only two minutes, but he curled his shot wide of the target.

Maresca’s side began to find some momentum and the game suddenly switched from one end to the other as Fatawu raced in from the right and unleashed a powerful shot which shook the crossbar.

Leeds immediately moved into the Leicester area and Crysencio Summerville went down under pressure from Leicester’s Ricardo Pereira.

Referee Dean Whitestone waved away all appeals, much to Farke’s anger.  He made his feelings known in the technical area, with his protests seeing him shown a yellow card.

Leeds continued to put pressure on Leicester after the break and goalkeeper Mads Hermansen could only parry a Piroe shot, but there was no-one to take advantage of the loose ball.

Leeds who broke the deadlock when a Daniel James corner was met by Sam Byram’s header, which was pushed out by Hermansen. The Dane may have got lucky moments earlier, but this time the ball fell into Rutter’s path and he scored from close range for his third of the season.

Maresca had been planning to take off Jamie Vardy and replace him with Kelechi Iheanacho as the goal went in, a move which then happened with Leicester a goal down.

Leeds threatened a second with 17 minutes to go as James broke clear, but his low drive was smothered by Hermansen.

Leicester laid siege to the Leeds goal in the closing stages, but could not find the equaliser.

QPR have sacked manager Gareth Ainsworth following defeat to Sky Bet Championship leaders Leicester on Saturday.

Goalscorer Andre Dozzell was sent off before Harry Winks inflicted a sixth straight loss which spelled the end of former Rangers midfielder Ainsworth’s reign.

CEO Lee Hoos told the club’s website: “Making a call such as this is never easy. Many supporters have told me in recent months that they have never wanted someone to succeed more than Gareth, which is an indication of the fondness everyone associated with QPR has for him.

“Unfortunately, results this season haven’t gone the way we all wanted and we feel a change is necessary.

“Gareth has been a pleasure to work with from the moment he arrived and I am truly sorry this has not worked out as we all had hoped.”

After Stephy Mavididi opened the scoring on the half-hour, Dozzell equalised shortly before the interval – but the midfielder was dismissed early in the second half for two quick cautions.

Abdul Fatawu reacted angrily to a challenge from Dozzell, who raised a hand towards the Leicester winger and was shown a first yellow card for the foul followed swiftly by another for the retaliation.

Rangers battled hard but Leicester made their numerical advantage count with 10 minutes left when Winks rifled in a right-footed strike for his first goal since moving from Tottenham.

Speaking before his departure, Ainsworth bemoaned his side’s “naivety” after they had a man sent off for the second successive match.

It came after Jimmy Dunne was dismissed during the midweek defeat at West Brom, also for picking up two yellow cards in quick succession.

“Naivety has cost us again. It’s cost us over the past two games,” Ainsworth said.

“Out of the four bookings that have cost us two red cards, I think there’s only one legitimate foul in there and the rest has been just stupidity.

“Andre has reacted just as Fatawu wanted him to. The referee has no choice but to give a second yellow.

“We had a plan put in place that I think was working, but again you need 11 men, especially against the top-of-the-league team.

“I thought there were some superb performances for us. There wasn’t much in the game at all until Andre falls for the trick of gamesmanship from Fatawu.

“Andre has to learn from that. It was always going to be tough after that. It still took a world-class goal to beat us.”

Leicester boss Enzo Maresca insisted there must be no let-up from his side after they maintained their commanding lead at the top of the table.

The Foxes are five points clear of second-placed Ipswich and 14 clear of Leeds, seemingly on course for an immediate return to the top flight in Maresca’s first season at the helm.

The Italian coach, though, warned against any sense of complacency.

“We have just one problem: we are still in October. I would like to still be in the same position in February, March and April,” he said.

“You can lose a game for many reasons, but for sure you can lose a game if you have a drop in intensity. We know that because we always mention that.

“As long as we remain with the same intensity then we can win more games than we lose.

“But the players deserve it. The way they work on the ball and off the ball, they make an unbelievable effort. They are open-minded and fantastic.”

Leicester boss Enzo Maresca insisted there must be no let-up from his side after a 2-1 win at QPR maintained their commanding lead at the top of the Sky Bet Championship.

The Foxes are five points clear of second-placed Ipswich and 14 clear of Leeds, seemingly on course for an immediate return to the top flight in Maresca’s first season at the helm.

The Italian coach, though, warned against any sense of complacency.

“We have just one problem: we are still in October. I would like to still be in the same position in February, March and April,” he said.

“You can lose a game for many reasons, but for sure you can lose a game if you have a drop in intensity. We know that because we always mention that.

“If you come here, against this team, after their five (defeats) in a row, and you drop a little bit in terms of intensity, then they will beat us for sure.

“As long as we remain with the same intensity then we can win more games than we lose.

“But the players deserve it. The way they work on the ball and off the ball, they make an unbelievable effort. They are open-minded and fantastic.”

After Stephy Mavididi opened the scoring on the half-hour, Andre Dozzell equalised shortly before the interval – but the midfielder was dismissed early in the second half for two quick cautions following a foul and his reaction.

Rangers, who have lost six matches in a row and remain one off the bottom of the table, battled hard.

Leicester, though, made their numerical advantage count with 10 minutes left when Harry Winks rifled in a right-footed strike for his first goal since moving from Tottenham.

QPR boss Gareth Ainsworth bemoaned his side’s “naivety” after they had a man sent off for the second successive match.

Abdul Fatawu reacted angrily to a challenge from Dozzell, who raised a hand towards the Leicester winger and was shown a first yellow card for the foul followed swiftly by another for the retaliation.

It came after Jimmy Dunne was dismissed during the midweek defeat at West Brom, also for picking up two yellow cards in quick succession.

“Naivety has cost us again. It’s cost us over the past two games,” Ainsworth said.

“Out of the four bookings that have cost us two red cards, I think there’s only one legitimate foul in there and the rest has been just stupidity.

“Andre has reacted just as Fatawu wanted him to. The referee has no choice but to give a second yellow.

“We had a plan put in place that I think was working, but again you need 11 men, especially against the top-of-the-league team.

“I thought there were some superb performances for us. There wasn’t much in the game at all until Andre falls for the trick of gamesmanship from Fatawu.

“Andre has to learn from that. It was always going to be tough after that. It still took a world-class goal to beat us.”

Rangers’ spirited performance perhaps eased the pressure on Ainsworth, who remains convinced they will avoid relegation.

However, a defeat away to fellow strugglers Rotherham next weekend would put further focus on his future.

“I am proud of that performance. I can hold my head up high and say we gave absolutely everything,” Ainsworth said.

“As long as that keeps happening we’ll amass enough points to stay in this division.”

Harry Winks’ late goal gave Leicester a 2-1 victory over 10-man QPR and maintained their five-point lead at the top of the Sky Bet Championship.

After Stephy Mavididi opened the scoring, Andre Dozzell equalised shortly before the interval, but was sent off early in the second half.

Struggling QPR – who have now lost six matches in a row and remain one off the bottom of the table – battled hard, but the Foxes eventually made their numerical advantage count with 10 minutes left.

The ball was worked out to Winks, who made space for the shot and rifled in a right-footed strike from the edge of the penalty area for the midfielder’s first Leicester goal since moving from Tottenham.

QPR have won just once at home in more than a year and now have lost all but one of their seven home games this season.

A spirited showing probably somewhat eased the pressure on Gareth Ainsworth, but a defeat away to fellow strugglers Rotherham next weekend would put his future as R’s boss in more doubt.

Leicester dominated possession from the start and QPR had an early let-off when Cesare Casadei headed over from six yards from Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s corner.

However, luck went against Rangers when they fell behind on the half-hour mark.

Mavididi cut in from the left and Albert Adomah’s attempt to block the shot resulted in a looping deflection which went beyond keeper Asmir Begovic and in off the far post.

QPR responded well to the setback and equalised five minutes before half-time.

Lyndon Dykes’ header from Adomah’s cross was cleared off the line by Hamza Choudhury, but the ball dropped to Dozzell, who fired home left-footed from the edge of the penalty area.

Dozzell, though, soon from hero to villain when he was sent off on 59 minutes for two cautions.

Abdul Fatawu reacted angrily to a challenge from Dozzell, who raised a hand towards the Leicester winger and was shown a first yellow card for the foul followed by another for the retaliation.

It reduced QPR to 10 men for the second successive match, with Jimmy Dunne having been dismissed during the midweek loss at West Brom.

Already without injured centre-backs Steve Cook and Morgan Fox, Dunne’s absence further limited Ainsworth’s defensive options as Leicester closed out victory when Winks struck late on.

Rangers can at least take some encouragement from the fight they showed against a Leicester team which has won 13 of their opening 14 league games this season and seem very much on course for promotion back to the Premier League.

Enzo Maresca insists Leicester are not the league’s only title candidates despite James Justin’s goal sending them eight points clear at the top of the Sky Bet Championship following a 1-0 win against Sunderland.

Justin was the unlikely hero for the Foxes, heading home Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s corner from the left after 12 minutes to seal the points and an eighth successive league win.

The home side spurned numerous chances to extend their lead as both Stephy Mavididi and Kelechi Iheanacho saw shots come back off a post while Black Cats substitute Abdoullah Ba spurned a glorious chance to equalise late on.

Maresca said: “We are happy but we are not thinking we are the only club in the Championship trying to get promoted.

“In football, the normal thing is to lose more than you win. In this moment we’ve won 12 out of 13, it’s not something normal, the players and the fans deserve to enjoy it after the relegation.

“We know that these records are important if we reach our target, these records show what the players have done and that it is not something normal, but we’re still in October.

“We would like to have the same situation in March and April, it’s fantastic, we are not the only team building to reach the title and in our case we changed 14 or 15 players from last season.

“It was a very difficult game, it’s probably the game I’m most happy with in terms of handling a different kind of game, we were very aggressive and were quite good on the ball.”

Sunderland slipped to a third straight league defeat, although Black Cats boss Tony Mowbray was impressed by his side’s performance and believes opponents Leicester are likely to win the title after their record-breaking start to the campaign.

Mowbray said: “We believed we could come here and win the game, we missed some really good chances. I asked the players to challenge themselves and see if they want to play in the Premier League one day.

“We competed really well, we just lacked the composure required at the top end of the pitch. If that’s the level we play at every week, we’re going to win enough games.

“We just need to improve the end product. We can score goals, we missed some golden chances to put the ball in the net.

“We’re not finishing above Leicester City, I think Leicester will win the league. Burnley had the same amount of points as we do at this stage last season, the results will take care of themselves.

“We put a lot of work into defending set-plays because we’re not a huge team, a free header has cost us two games on the bounce.”

Leicester recorded an eighth successive victory in the league to move eight points clear at the top of the table with a 1-0 win against Sunderland as James Justin’s first-half header proved decisive.

Justin rose highest to head home Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s corner after 12 minutes and secure the points as the full-back scored his first league goal for the club in over two years.

The Foxes hit a post twice in the first half and missed a number of chances to double their lead throughout but did enough to secure a 12th win from 13 league matches to continue their stunning start to the season.

Sunderland have now lost their last three league matches and should have equalised at the death only for Abdoullah Ba to fire over from close range as Tony Mowbray’s side struggled to penetrate the league’s meanest defence.

The Black Cats had the game’s first chance when a cross from the right ran through to Jack Clarke at the back past only for the midfielder to see his shot turned away by the legs of Leicester goalkeeper Mads Hermansen.

However, Leicester broke the deadlock in the 12th minute with their first meaningful effort on goal as Justin leapt unmarked at the near post to head in Dewsbury-Hall’s excellent corner from the left.

The home side went close to a second goal soon after as Foxes winger Stephy Mavididi jinked his way into the box and saw a low shot superbly flicked onto a post by the boot of Sunderland keeper Anthony Patterson.

Leicester hit the woodwork again towards the end of the first half as Kelechi Iheanacho blasted a shot against a post after Wout Faes clipped a delightful pass into Cesare Casadei who in turn nodded the ball into the path of the striker.

Chelsea loanee Casadei then spurned a couple of chances to double Leicester’s lead after the break, first shooting straight at Patterson after the ball fell kindly to him in the box before seeing a low shot tipped behind by the Sunderland keeper soon after.

Casadei turned provider a few minutes later, teeing up Iheanacho for a shot on goal only for the Nigerian to curl an effort a couple of yards wide when one-on-one with Patterson.

Sunderland enjoyed their best spell of the game in the final 20 minutes as Dan Neil curled wide after pouncing on an error from Harry Winks despite having time and space to pick his spot.

The visitors wasted another opening shortly after as Dennis Cirkin fired over from the left edge of the penalty area after some excellent build-up play to create a shooting chance.

However, the Black Cats’ best chance to draw level came in the final few minutes as substitute Ba somehow fired over the crossbar from inside the box with the goal at his mercy and Foxes goalkeeper Hermansen on the floor.

Enzo Maresca insisted his Leicester players remained full of belief even when they were trailing during their 3-1 comeback win at Swansea.

Matt Grimes fired the hosts into a 20th-minute lead with a sublime volley, but Jannik Vestergaard fortuitously bundled into the net on the stroke of half-time to level proceedings with what was his first goal for the Foxes.

Second-half efforts from Abdul Fatawu and substitute Kelechi Iheanacho earned the visitors their 11th win from 12 Championship matches this season.
“I’m very happy because even at 1-0 down, the team continued in the same way. No panic,” said Italian boss Maresca.

“This for us is the most important thing. In the first half we were in control. We conceded some transitions, but even with that I think we were in control. We created chances.

“We deserved [to get to] 1-1. In the second half we continued to play the same way.

“The good feeling is that when we were 1-0 down, I can see for the players on the pitch that it doesn’t matter – continue, continue, continue. They can see that continuing that way, something is going to happen.”

Michael Duff was heavily criticised in the opening stages of the season as Swansea’s seven-game winless run ensured they made their worst start to a league campaign in 32 years.

But having won four consecutive matches prior to their defeat against the Championship leaders, Duff felt his side’s showing against the Foxes proved Swansea are a side on the up.

“I think we fell the wrong side of big moments in the game,” said Duff. “But the general performance I was pleased with. I thought the structure of the team looked good, the energy looked good and some of the quality was good.

“Ultimately, the supporters aren’t stupid and they clapped them off the pitch having got beat.

“The last time we got beat (at home) was against Bristol City and quite rightly the players got booed, because we looked nothing like we did today.

“If you are going to get beat, that’s the way to get beat. The lads gave me everything today. I think that performance would probably 90% of the time have beaten most teams in this league.

“So there were loads of positives. The attendance, the noise in the stadium – they came with the players. Other than the result, there were a lot more positives than negatives.”

Championship leaders Leicester came from behind to beat Swansea 3-1 and make history by becoming the first ever side in the second tier to win their opening six away matches of a league campaign.

Matt Grimes volleyed home his third goal of the season to put Swansea ahead in the 20th minute.

Jannik Vestergaard and Abdul Fatawu responded with their first goals for Leicester in the 43rd and 63rd minutes respectively before Kelechi Iheanacho bagged his side’s third in the closing stages as the Foxes made it 11 victories from 12 games this term – ending Swansea’s four-game winning run in the process.

The visitors carried the greater threat in the opening stages, with 10-cap England midfielder Harry Winks guiding a speculative effort over.

But it was Swansea who took the lead as Wout Faes could only head Jamie Paterson’s corner to the edge of the box where Grimes was on hand to spectacularly volley beyond Mads Hermansen.

It was only the seventh goal Leicester had conceded in the league this season, and one that typified the confidence Swansea have shown in the final third of late.

Enzo Maresca’s side looked angered after going behind and immediately set about levelling proceedings.

Wilfred Ndidi’s passed effort skimmed wide of Carl Rushworth’s post before Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall headed straight at the Brighton loanee.

The away side’s domination allowed the Foxes to push high up the pitch, although that in turn left spaces in behind for Swansea to exploit.

As a result, Paterson pipped Vestergaard to a loose ball before being challenged by goalkeeper Hermansen outside the box which prompted Jerry Yates into shooting from 45 yards out with the goal left unguarded, only for his effort to sail over the crossbar.

Leicester’s pressure told just before the break, though, as the Swans were unable to clear Stephy Mavididi’s cross, with the loose ball from Ndidi’s shot ending up striking Vestergaard and trickling into the net.

Michael Duff’s side very nearly regained the lead in added time at the end of the opening half as Liam Cullen’s sweetly-struck effort was tipped on to the crossbar by Hermansen, with Harry Darling heading on to the roof of the net from the resulting corner as the game remained level at half-time.

Dewsbury-Hall drilled at Rushworth 30 seconds after the restart as the league leaders looked intent on ensuring their winning run continued while Mavididi fired wide in what had become a more cagey affair.

Leicester went in front just after the hour mark as Ndidi left Dewsbury-Hall’s cross for Fatawu to stroke home.

Swansea pushed for an equaliser, and after Paterson had a shot blocked, Jamal Lowe was brilliantly denied by Hermansen.

But substitute Iheanacho rounded off the visitors’ victory four minutes from time as he coolly slotted the ball beyond Rushworth to ensure Maresca’s men remain at the summit.

Reggae Girlz striker Khadija “Bunny” Shaw continues to soak up compliments from her Manchester City family, as England international Alex Greenwood is the latest to praise her all-round abilities and believes the high profile Jamaican international can become the best player in the world.

Shaw, 26, has significantly impacted City Women’s team since signing with the north England club two years ago. Last season, the towering striker amassed 31 goals across all competitions which has propelled her to the pinnacle as the club’s leading scorer.

Last weekend, Shaw netted her first goals of the new Women’s Super League season with a double against Bristol City, adding to her FA Women’s League Cup goal against Everton earlier in the week.

And if manager Gareth Taylor’s sentiments about how influential Shaw is to the team wasn’t enough, Greenwood added her voice to the chorus.

“Her goal record speaks for itself, but Bunny is so much more than goals. What she brings to the team in terms of play, her work off the ball, and off the pitch – she is a top person. I think she can be the best in the world if she wants to be. She has all the attributes to be the best in the world, I know how hard she works in training,” Greenwood declared.

“It’s the reason she’s flourishing right now. She’s been really strong for us so we just need to keep feeding her, keep giving her the ball and the rest she’ll take care of. She’s a great person to be around and a really good friend of mine as well. She is someone I can demand really high standards of, and likewise she can of me and everyone else,” the 30-year-old centre back added.

Shaw first made her mark professionally with FC Bordeaux in 2019. During her time there, she scored 34 goals and won the Golden Boot, as she assisted the French club to Champions League qualification.

It came as no surprise when she moved to City where she made her mark in her first season in which she tallied with 16 goals.

Now installed as City’s point player in attack, following the retirement of veteran Ellen White, Shaw, with 24 goals in the league last term, broke the club’s record for the most Women’s Super League goals in a season.

Taylor reiterated his admiration for the Jamaican.

“I’m super proud of Bunny and all the players are. She understands the support and help she gets here to allow her to be herself. I think what she’s done is remarkable, really – to go from the first game of the season scoring and not really have a dry spell at all, maybe a couple of games,” Taylor said.

“She’s continued to score goals. She’s certainly a proven goalscorer, but it’s the types of goals she’s getting now and everything else she brings to us in the games. Her hold up play is phenomenal,” he noted.

Shaw’s could add to her tally when Manchester City visit Leicester City at King Power Stadium on Saturday.

Leicester manager Enzo Maresca says it will be impossible to keep all of his top players happy this season as he aims to take the club back to the Premier League at the first time of asking.

The Italian coach made six changes against Stoke, in what was his side’s third game in six days.

The move paid off as Leicester recorded their sixth successive Championship win that kept them top of the table.

Kelechi Iheanacho opened the scoring after 24 minutes before Jamie Vardy came off the bench to wrap up a 2-0 win.

Vardy had started on Wednesday against Preston, with Iheanacho coming off the bench to score.

“That’s why we try to switch them around,” said Maresca. “The other night against Preston, Kele was probably not happy to be on the bench.

“But he came on and was fantastic.

“Here, Jamie was not happy to be on the bench. But he came on and scored, and was happy.

“To be competitive, you need two players for each position so they can compete between them. In the end, we can choose one of them.

“Here we left out Wout Faes, Stephy Mavididi, Wilfred Ndidi, James Justin and Jamie.

“But they cannot think to play 46 games. It’s impossible.

“At the moment, no human being can play every game at the same level.

“Maybe next time, I’ll make six changes, we’ll lose and I’ll be wrong. But we have to make those decisions.”

Maresca accepted that Stoke had been tough to break down, as have a number of visitors to the King Power Stadium.

“We need to improve a lot because we are going to face these kinds of games many times. But we are going in the right direction,” he added.

Stoke manager Alex Neil had nine players missing through injury.

He said he wanted to take the game to Leicester in the second half, but the home side’s strength in depth was difficult to combat.

“If we’d got to half-time at 0-0, our intention was always to try and have a go,” he said.

“You can see why, when you do that, you don’t come here and go toe to toe with Leicester. Particularly when you haven’t got your strongest squad.

“But we had arguably two of the best chances in the game which fell to Nathan Lowe. He’s disappointed, but I said to him afterwards that I’d be more disappointed if they weren’t falling to him.

“If we had a stronger team, we’d get a better feel of where we are compared to them. We had a young side out.

“The minute we changed, they brought on pace at the top end of the pitch.

“Jamie Vardy’s going to cause you all kinds of problems at this level.

“But our set up was good, I don’t think they really had a chance until their goal. That was disappointing from our perspective as Iheanacho was really wide.”

Neil admitted Leicester’s dominance at this level shows no sign of weakening.

“They’ll be one of the best Championship teams in a long time,” he said.

“Just look at the stadium and the fans, and the players they’ve got. They have four internationals who’ve played for England – I don’t remember that happening anywhere else.”

Kelechi Iheanacho and Jamie Vardy were both on target as Leicester stayed top of the Championship with a 2-0 victory against Stoke at the King Power Stadium.

Iheanacho scored for the third successive game as the dominant Foxes reached the 30-point mark from only 11 games and already have a 10-point cushion to third.

But, once more, Enzo Maresca’s side had to work hard for their victory against stubborn opponents, with injury-hit Stoke providing the league leaders with few chances until the latter stages.

Iheanacho broke the deadlock after 24 minutes but Leicester had to wait until the 79th minute before substitute Vardy netted his fourth league goal of the season from close range.

The result meant the Foxes recorded three home league wins in succession, without conceding, for the first time since April 2017, when Craig Shakespeare was in charge.

Maresca made six changes from Wednesday’s 3-0 win over Preston. That included former Stoke defender Harry Souttar’s first Championship start of the season.

Stoke went into the game missing nine players through injury and their bench contained two goalkeepers and two 16-year-olds.

Stoke made it clear early on that Leicester would have to work hard to break them down.

And the visitors created an early opening of their own when Bae Jun-ho raced to the edge of the area and went down under a challenge from Jannik Vestergaard, but referee Geoff Eltringham dismissed all shouts for a penalty.

Leicester took the lead through Iheanacho’s third goal in as many games.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Ricardo Pereira combined to supply Iheanacho on the left of the Stoke area, and he drove the ball into the far corner before Stoke goalkeeper Mark Travers could react.

Leicester’s command of the game was displayed when the scoreboard showed them having 90 per cent possession at one point.

Stoke had a clear chance to equalise at the start of the second half when Mehdi Leris delivered a cross for Nathan Lowe, but he mistimed his header in front of goal and watched it fly over the bar.

But Leicester almost scored their second goal of the game when Yunus Akgun’s shot from the edge of the area brought an impressive save from Travers.

Leicester eventually extended their lead with substitute Vardy being on the end of an excellent move.

Vardy had only been on the field for three minutes when he was presented with a close-range opportunity after some neat exchanges involving Dewsbury-Hall and Abdul Fatawu before Wilfred Ndidi’s final ball set up the Leicester number nine to score.

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