James Maddison and Kasper Schmeichel were singled out for praise after Leicester City’s 3-1 UEFA Conference League victory over Randers on Thursday night, as reported by TV2.
The sixth best team in Denmark mustered 23 shots on goal last night but still ended up on the wrong end of a 3-1 scoreline. And there’s a rather simple explanation for that.
Because, while Leicester’s performance was another below-par one in a series full of them, Brendan Rodgers has a handful players capable of producing moments of genuine world-class quality at both ends of the pitch.
And Randers, for all their effort and endeavour, were powerless in the face of such individual brilliance.
Shortly after Kasper Schemeichel sprung to his left and tipped a Stephen Odey shot over the bar, a wonderful reaction save made all the more impressive by the fact his weight initially appeared to be on the opposite side, Maddison put the game out of reach, whipping a picture-perfect free-kick over the wall and into the top corner.
Four minutes later, he did it again. Albeit, this time, from open play.
Cutting inside onto his right boot, Maddison sent another long-ranger curler into the back of the Randers net.
During a season in which so many of Leicester’s players have fallen short of their usual standards, Maddison’s performances – after a difficult start to the campaign – should not be overlooked. He’s now just one goal away from making this the most prolific season of his Leicester career.
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“That’s why Maddison costs so much money,” Randers midfielder Vito Hammershoy-Mistrati tells TV2.
“They just need half a second, then they decide the match. First he kicks it into one corner, then he kicks it into the other. It is difficult to defend.”
It would not be a Leicester City game in 2021/22 without a howler of some sort however. Schmeichel had produced one of his finest performances of a difficult season.
Until, that is, he miscontrolled a simple back pass in the dying seconds. Gifting Randers and Odey the goal they had threatened all night long.
Home coach Thomas Thomasberg was in no mood to poke fun however. He points out that, if Schmiechel had not been in such fantastic form, Randers might have given Rodgers an almighty fright in East Jutland.
“I think Kasper Schmeichel was the Man of the Match tonight,” says Thomasberg.
“We had the chances to score three or four goals. But it was important that we ended our European adventure with a good performance.”
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