Another second-half defeat against Rotherham gives Leicester City three points and puts them six points clear at the top of the Championship standings.
Patson Daka scored twice quickly on the hour mark and Cesare Casadei’s header finished the game to secure Enzo Maresco’s team’s fifth consecutive win and the advantage before Christmas. Nine of the last ten teams leading the division on 25 December earned automatic promotion.
Ipswich’s defeat to Leeds gave City the chance to move six points clear ahead of the Christmas Day game. While the Championship’s bottom club let them down in the first half, they dominated the second half and won comfortably.
Despite this being the first of four games in ten days and a big game at Ipswich awaiting on Boxing Day, Maresca named an unchanged line-up. This meant that Daka started for the fourth game in a row, the longest time a City striker has been in the team all season.
Rotherham came in without a win in ten games and had won just two points from a possible 33 on the road. They started defending from the first whistle, so the first half saw little action.
Although that was partly due to City looking a bit clumsy in the opening minutes and some of their attacking players not being as sharp as usual. They finished the half with nine shots on target, while the Millers had none, the best of which came from Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Stephy Mavididi.
Dewsbury-Hall tried to play the ball to former City goalkeeper Viktor Johansson, but the Swede caught it with his hand, while Mavididi, who was City’s biggest threat in the first period, volleyed over after a great dribble to start the attack. The winger also had the ball in the net, but was called offside very early.
This meant that in 12 home games City have scored only four first-half goals, the fewest in the division. But they have had a recent habit of scoring early in the second half, and they almost managed it again this time.
Abdul Fatawu robbed Sebastian Revan inside the Rotherham area and the ball rolled to Dak. His shot went through Johansson’s legs, but Sean Morrison got back on the line and cleared the goal superbly.
However, the Zambian could not be denied a second time as a well-executed action and a fight in front of goal led to the breakthrough. City quickly took possession and found ball carrier Wout Faes, but the Belgian fired over and Johansson had to parry the shot. Ndidi should have hit the rebounded ball but missed his attempt, so Daka took his chance and made the breakthrough.
The second goal came moments later when substitute Yunus Akgun forced a terrible pass and Daka outpaced Johansson to win a penalty. The Zambia international beat the Rotherham goalkeeper with his hand.
The third goal didn’t have to wait long. Dennis Praet crossed from the left to Ricardo Pereira, who craftily crossed into the six-yard box, where Casadei was wide open and the Italian bent his header into the empty net. Here’s how we rate the players.
Mads Hermansen: After two assists in his last two games, the Dane had perhaps his calmest game of the season. He didn’t have to make any saves and, with City so high up the pitch, he didn’t have to work with his feet either.
James Justin: Justin didn’t do anything wrong on the right side, but he wasn’t particularly adventurous with his passes, opting to keep it simple. This made City less of a threat on his right. 6
Jannik Vestergaard: The Dane played a very solid game. He won with his head when Rotherham were sending long balls in, and also did well with his foot on a couple of occasions. He was never beaten and controlled the field well. 7.
Wout Faes: City star. In the first half he split the Rotherham defence with his balls forward and made them dangerous, and his audacious penetration into the box was crucial in breaking the deadlock with the first goal. He was also combative at the back. 8.
Ricardo Pereira: The Portuguese was once again very tidy and Rotherham’s deep positioning allowed him to break forward. He provided a cute and accurate cross for Casade’s goal. 7
Harry Winks: In the first hour, he was a bit clumsy at times in the basics. But when City took the lead, he was composed. 6
Wilfred Ndidi: He wasn’t as sharp as he has been in the final third, and some of his passes and crosses were wide of the target. He set up Mavididi’s volleyed shot in the first half, but was generally quite calm. 6
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall: In the first half, he ran well into the area and was on the ball a lot, causing problems for Mavididi on the left. Just didn’t have a real magic touch in midfield. 7.
Abdul Fatawu: With his weakest performance in recent times, he showed that he is still a teenager who can be inconsistent. His control was poor and he didn’t beat his players as regularly. Nevertheless, he set up a chance for Daco from the line. 5.
Patson Daka: His touch was not good in the first half and he struggled to find space in the box when he had less space. However, he was in the right place when he opened the scoring and used his pace to score a penalty kick. 7
Stephy Mavididi: He was City’s most dangerous player in the first half and showed some great dribbling skills to get through tight gaps. He persevered in the second half and regularly took care of City’s dangerous attacks, earning a goal or an assist. 8
Yunus Akgun: His energetic pressing led to penalties at the best of times, but it would have been nice to see him try to beat his full-back more often. But he is slowly getting back into the game. 6
Dennis Praet: He was tidy on the ball and found himself in good attacking positions. It looks like there will be a lot more from him. 6
Cesare Casadei: Casadei: He was in the right place for his second goal for City and that’s a quality he needs to show more of. He looked much more confident after his goal than in recent weeks and his control and passing were good. 7
Harry Souttar: In his few minutes on the pitch, the big defender had very little to do. He kept it simple. 6
Hamza Choudhury: He was a bit loose with his passes and touches. He came close at the end of the game with a well-struck volley. 5