Video: Leicester 2-2 West Ham – Vardy red card & controversial penalties see spoils shared

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It was a hectic game at the King Power Stadium, with the last half an hour particularly so. The game had everything, with near misses, a red card for Leicester, controversial penalties, and goals galore.

West Ham were painfully unlucky in the opening few minutes, with a Cheikhou Kouyate header hitting both posts before finding the arms of Kasper Schmeichel. Emmanuel Emenike probably should have done better to anticipate and get the tap in, but he was caught on his heels, ball watching and expecting it to find the back of the net on its own.

The Hammers were looking strong early on, but Leicester soon started to create. And with the quality of Riyad Mahrez and N’Golo Kante combined with the clinical finishing of Jamie Vardy, the Foxes took the lead.

In the second half it only really looked like Leicester were going to extend their lead, at least up until Vardy was given his marching orders.

The England international had picked up a rather soft yellow card earlier in the game, which really came back to haunt him. While through on goal he threw a leg out looking for contact with Angelo Ogbonna, which he got. He went down dramatically though, and the referee handed him a second yellow for simulation.

West Ham turned the screw a little after that, and began pushing for the equaliser. They came close a few times, but it wasn’t until late on in the game we really saw some excitement.

The visitors got the equaliser in controversial fashion, with Wes Morgan deemed to have fouled Winston Reid in the box. There had been a huge number of fouls in the box during set pieces throughout the game, but this one looked fairly soft. Nonetheless, Andy Carroll converted and West Ham were right back in it.

Moments later they were more than back in it, with Aaron Cresswell firing an absolute stunner into the top corner from distance. It was a great goal, and it deserved to the the winner.

It wasn’t to be though, as Carroll went from hero to villain soon after. He fouled Jeffrey Schlupp at the edge of the box, and with seconds left on the clock Leicester had a penalty. It was a pretty soft penalty, but with all the fouling going on in the box, one of them was eventually going to be given Leicester’s way. Leonardo Ulloa stepped up and put it away to secure his side a point.

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The Premier League title is now within their grasp, and it seems very unlikely that any team is going to be able to catch them now. The draw has opened the door a crack, but it seems likely to be slammed shut in the next week or two.

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