Zorya Luhansk 1 - 0 Leicester City: Finished | 2020-12-03 | Europa League

Goalkeepers	G	GC	SAV
Nikola Vasilj	0	0	4

Forwards	G	A	SHO	FC	FS
Artem Gromov 93'	0	0	0	1	2
Olexandr Gladkiy 81'	0	0	1	5	1

Midfielders	SHO	FC	FS
Yehor Nazaryna	0	1	3
Vladlen Yurchenko	2	2	1
Vladyslav Kabaev	0	2	2
Vladyslav Kochergin	3	1	0

Defenders	A	SHO	FC	FS
Denis Favorov	1	1	0	1
Andrejs Ciganiks	0	2	1	0
Dmytro Ivanisenya	0	0	0	0
Joel Abu Hanna	0	1	1	0

Substitutes	G	SHO	FC	FS
Allahyar Sayyadmanesh 81'(Olexandr Gladkiy) 84'	1	2	0	0
Mihailo Perovic 93'(Artem Gromov)	0	0	0	0
Danylo Alefirenko	0	0	0	0
Maksym Agapov	0	0	0	0
Dmytro Piddubnyi	0	0	0	0
Maxim Lunev	0	0	0	0
Sergiy Gryn	0	0	0	0
Dmytro Matsapura	0	0	-	-
Mykyta Shevchenko	0	0	-	-

Goalkeepers	G	GC	SAV
Danny Ward	0	1	2

Forwards	SHO	FC	FS
Kelechi Iheanacho	1	1	0
Cengiz Ünder	4	0	2
Harvey Barnes	2	1	1

Midfielders	FC	FS
Hamza Choudhury	1	1
Dennis Praet 77'	3	3
Wilfred Ndidi 56'	1	0

Defenders	SHO	FC	FS
James Justin	2	0	2
Wes Morgan 56'	0	0	0
Ricardo Pereira 45'	0	1	2
Çaglar Söyüncü 17'	0	0	0

Substitutes	SHO	FC	FS
Wesley Fofana 17'(Çaglar Söyüncü)	1	1	1
Luke Thomas 45'(Ricardo Pereira)	1	0	0
Nampalys Mendy 56'(Wilfred Ndidi)	0	1	1
Christian Fuchs 56'(Wes Morgan)	0	1	0
James Maddison 77'(Dennis Praet)	1	0	1
Shane Flynn	0	0	0
Ben Nelson	0	0	0
Thakgalo Leshabela	0	0	0
Marc Albrighton	0	0	0
Ayoze Pérez	0	0	0
Jakub Stolarczyk	0	-	-
Eldin Jakupovic	0	-	-

90'+5'

That is all from this Europa League fixture, until next time!

90'+5'

As mentioned below, despite winning here, Zorya's European campaign is over, although they do face AEK Athens in their final group game next week. For Leicester, they will next host Braga, where they will hope to confirm the top spot, after already confirming their qualification out of Group G last week in Portugal.

90'+5'

Sayyadmanesh's goal is the difference between the sides as he turned in Favorov's cross in the 84th minute to open the scoring. Despite success here, the hosts' fate is confirmed by Braga's result as the Ukranian side fail to make it out of Group G. The Foxes did have good chances, largely through Under, however, did not do enough to warrant a positive result.

90'+5'

FULL-TIME: ZORYA LUHANSK 1-0 LEICESTER CITY

90'+4'

GREAT SAVE! Vasilj virtually confirms his side's three points as he produces a magnificent save to tip over Under's left-footed effort which seemed destined for the top left corner from 20 yards out.

90'+3'

After Gromov's foray into the box, he has injured himself and Perovic is the man to come on up top.

90'+2'

Gromov produces a lovely turn to lose three Leicester shirts before rolling in Kabaev, who feels he is then fouled in the area by Fofana, but as has been the case all game the referee insists play goes on.

90'+1'

Thomas presses aggressively, forcing Ivanisenya into clearing out for a Leicester throw. Fuchs again goes long before the ball falls to Barnes, who does not make good contact with a left-footed effort which rolls into the grateful grasp of Vasilj.

90'

Fuchs sends a long throw-in into the area before Thomas' cross is deflected into the hands of Vasilj as the fourth official announces there will be at least three minutes of added time.

89'

Maddison theatrically throws himself to the floor but the referee is having none of it as the Foxes have less than five minutes to chase an equaliser.

87'

Fofana holds his ground and barges into Sayyadmanesh to both foul the substitute and earn him a place in the referee's book. The centre-back knew what he was doing there as he stopped the Zorya man's progress.

86'

Despite the hosts now leading, if things remain the same in Braga's game, the Ukranian side will still go out. From Leicester's perspective, if they lose here, they will have to wait until the next Europa League game to confirm their top spot in Group G.

84'

Favorov is heads towards the byline before steering a right-footed low cross across the face of goal, where Sayyadmanesh is on hand to smash in the opener.

84'

GOALLL!!! 1-0 ZORYA! After Justin’s chance, the hosts go down the other and open the scoring. Sayyadmanesh is on hand at the back post to smash in, courtesy of Favorov’s driven cross across the six-yard area.

83'

WIDE! Maddison reaches the byline after good work by Iheanacho and drills a cross towards the edge of the area. Justin comes out of nowhere and attempts to place a right-footed shot past Vasilj but sends it just the wrong side of the right-hand post.

81'

Gladkiy is hauled off as Skripnik replaces the striker with Sayyadmanesh.

80'

Under and Maddison look to make some thing happen down the right-hand side but the former's pass is way too strong and sails out, which may allow Zorya to make the substitutions they have lined up on the bench.

79'

DOUBLE SAVE! Iheanacho optimistically shoots with his left foot from the corner of the area and Vasilj parries the initial driven effort to his right. Substitute Maddison latches onto the rebound before drilling towards the near post but Vasilj is there again to make a great save with his feet.

77'

Maddison is finally introduced for the closing stages of the game as Rodgers chases a winner. Praet is the man to come off for the English midfielder.

76'

CHANCE! Under floats a free-kick directly onto the head of the unmarked Fofana in the area. Somehow, from the penalty spot, Fofana under no pressure at all heads wide of the target. Perhaps he looked to put too much power behind it as he appeared to catch his attempt with the wrong part of his head, sending it sailing well wide.

74'

Nazaryna commits the simplest of tactical fouls as Barnes looks to progress over the halfway line and the referee has no option to book the midfielder for his cynical efforts.

73'

Choudhury throws his arms in the air as the referee gives a foul in the middle of the park. The hosts play short and then Kabaev gives away possession which offers the visitors a chance to counter-attack.

71'

Barnes feels like Leicester should have a penalty after his cross clips the hip of Favorov. Replays show that the referee was right to not award the penalty, as the ball was nowhere near the hand of the right-back.

70'

Under has two or three options on the edge of the area but instead opts to go on his own. The Turk rounds two defenders before stumbling over and losing possession, much to the frustration of his attacking colleagues.

69'

Ciganiks crosses with his first touch but Fuchs is there to head clear inside his own area. Favorov then looks for Gladkiy but this time Fofana towers over the striker to again clear the danger.

67'

Iheanacho seems to be away down the left as he latches onto Thomas' whipped pass down the line, however, Ivanisenya does well to clear out for a throw-in, just as the Nigerian looked to be onto a chance.

65'

Barnes twists and turns before playing backwards to Mendy. Under and Barnes then attempt to exchange a one-two but the latter's pass is slightly overhit and trickles through to Vasilj.

63'

Both sides are not looking too assured in possession as they both seem to be struggling in the middle of the park to get the ball down and play. Perhaps the Foxes are missing the talent of Youri Tielemans or Maddison pulling the strings for them.

62'

Leicester’s 3-0 win in the reverse of this fixture was in fact their first ever meeting with Ukrainian opposition

60'

As things stand, Zorya are reliant on a comeback in the other Group G game from AEK Athens, otherwise their Europa League campaign will end here.

58'

Mendy is booked for a sliding tackle on Yurchenko in the middle of the park, despite the referee seemingly demanding play goes on at first.

58'

Mendy catches Yurchenko without getting the ball and the referee initially allows play to go on before pulling it back for the original foul.

56'

Morgan is Rodgers' third change of the game as Fuchs comes on to fill in the left centre-back role.

56'

In what could be another planned substitution, Ndidi comes off after his return from injury and will be replaced by Mendy.

56'

Ciganiks, perhaps more worried about the counter-attack than the actual shooting opportunity, fires high and wide over the bar on the volley from at least 40 yards out.

55'

The second half has started in a similar pattern to the first, with the hosts challenging the Foxes as Fofana is forced into heading behind for another corner to the Ukranian side.

53'

Zorya look to counter-attack with Kabaev looking for Gladkiy in the box, however, the striker cannot climb high enough to meet the cross and Leicester intercept.

50'

Zorya’s 3-0 win at AEK Athens last week halted their six game losing run in the Europa League (excluding qualifiers), recording their first three points since October 2017, which was also the last time they managed back-to-back wins in the competition.

45'+2'

Due to the rotated nature of this Foxes side, Rodgers may be reluctant to but could call upon the likes of Maddison or Perez to change this Europa League fixture. For Skripnik's team, the manager will simply be asking for more of the same as his Ukranian side has more than matched their visitors here so far.

48'

Barnes gets inches away from opening the scoring as he tries to latch onto Under's left-footed cross towards the back post. Unfortunately for the visitors, Barnes cannot get that crucial final touch inside the six-yard area to turn past Vasilj.

48'

OVER THE BAR! Under is afforded lots of space on the right, cutting in on his left foot as he so often does. This time, his whipped effort towards the far post curls just over the top of the bar as Leicester remain in search of an opening goal.

45'+2'

Despite being at opposite ends of the group and coming from different levels of top-flight football, the sides go in level 0-0 at the break. In fact, the hosts perhaps had the best chances of the opening 45, as Kochergin and Ciganiks both forced good saves out of Ward. However, down the other end, Rodgers' men will feel they should have taken the lead when Under spurned a glorious chance one-on-one against Vasilj.

47'

The introduction of Thomas during the interval will mean that Justin returns to a more familiar right-back role with the substitute filling in at left-back.

45'+2'

HALF-TIME: ZORYA LUHANSK 0-0 LEICESTER CITY

46'

Both sides are back out and the referee gets the second half of this Europa League fixture underway!

46'

Thomas is brought on at half-time as Pereira gets 45 minutes under his belt on his first return to football since March.

45'+1'

Another yellow card comes out for a rather confused looking Iheanacho, who had caught Nazaryna in the air but the challenge did not seem to warrant a caution.

45'

The fourth official indicates there will be one minute of added time as Gladkiy needlessly bundles Pereira over near the right-hand touchline.

44'

Gromov seems to be in on goal, however, Morgan and Fofana do excellently to combine and poke away the ball for a corner on the left. The resulting corner comes in towards the near post but the Foxes stand firm to defend the set-piece.

43'

Choudhury shows his strength in midfield before releasing Under, whose drilled cross from the right is poor which allows Abu Hanna to step in and intervene.

42'

Pereira, on his return to fitness, is booked for an aerial challenge in midfield. After Abu Hanna's tackle, that caution seems slightly harsh in comparison.

41'

Abu Hanna catches Praet with a nasty foul down the back of the leg and somehow escapes a booking. Under then swings in a poor free-kick which does not beat the first man, Zorya look to counter-attack but Justin is alert to the danger.

40'

Barnes is released down the left and runs at two Zorya defenders before dragging a right-footed effort wide of the near post from inside the area.

38'

Leicester appear bemused as the referee insists on a Zorya corner, as he suggests Fofana got the last touch on the ball. Thankfully for the hosts, Yurchenko's set-piece comes to nothing as Iheanacho clears.

37'

Praet's good movement is found by Under's smart pass and the Belgian crosses in from the byline. Barnes looks to meet the stood up cross in the middle but catches Favorov late to give away a free-kick inside the hosts' area.

35'

SAVE! Justin heads clear Yurchenko's corner before repeating the same dose to clear another Yurchenko cross. Ciganiks then races onto the loose ball and unleashes a wicked left-footed strike from 25 yards which Ward turns round the post as the goalkeeper dives to his left.

33'

Choudhury clips a pass over the top to Justin, who reaches the byline before driving a left-footed cross towards Iheanacho but great defending from Abu Hanna clears the danger.

32'

Ciganiks is both high and late on Under near the right-hand touchline and deservedly gets given the first yellow card of the game.

31'

WIDE! Under spurns a glorious chance as he places a right-footed shot just wide of Vasilj's left-hand post. Initially, Iheanacho and Barnes had linked up, with the latter feeding the Turkish player into the box to go one-on-one with Zorya's goalkeeper.

30'

Iheanacho was involved in all three of Leicester’s goals in their 3-0 win against Zorya Luhansk in the reverse fixture, scoring one and assisting two.

28'

Iheanacho waits patiently as he makes a run down the line for Barnes pass, however, Barnes opts for Under, who then hits a left-footed attempt way off target from 25 yards out.

27'

Justin has multiple options in the box but rather optimistically opts to shoot instead and his right-footed effort sails both high and wide of Vasilj's goal.

25'

Pereira intercepts high up the pitch and opts to pass rather than shoot on the volley. Possession then falls to Praet, who is muscled off the ball by Kochergin.

24'

Under cuts inside as if he is going to bend one towards the far corner but then attempts a flick, which goes horribly wrong and travels about two yards, straight into the feet of Ciganiks.

23'

Choudhury brings down a loose ball and feeds Justin, who sensibly opts to play backwards and retain possession under the pressure of Gladkiy.

21'

Justin and Barnes combine down the left-hand side before their progress is thwarted by a foul. The Foxes take it quick and look dangerous until Praet gives away a foul for a high foot.

20'

Kochergin, for the second time in the opening 20 minutes, gets on the edge of the box, this time shooting over the bar with a dipping left-footed shot.

19'

Iheanacho makes not one but two attempts to shoot but on both occasions, quite comically, ends up on the floor as he slips over. Justin then makes progress down the left, looking for Under in the box but Ivanisenya deals with the cross.

18'

Fofana's first involvement sees him overpower Gromov before playing backwards to Ward as Leicester look to get an early grip of this first half.

17'

On his return, Soyuncu lasts just 16 minutes before getting injured and it will be Fofana, who comes on in the heart of defence to partner Morgan.

15'

Neither side have had any meaningful possession in the last couple of minutes. However, Kochergin then plays a chipped pass over the top, which Soyuncu deals with but it looks like the Turkish centre-back has done some damage to himself there. After being absent through injury, this the last thing the Turk will want as he looks set to be forced off.

13'

Ndidi's diagonal pass intersects both Pereira and Under but the latter does well to keep the ball in play, Iheanacho then needlessly commits a foul up top to give the hosts possession back.

12'

Only Arsenal and TSG Hoffenheim (both 12) have amassed more Europa League points than Leicester this season (10), with only three other sides scoring more goals than the Foxes (12).

10'

Ciganiks looks for both Gromov and Gladkiy at the back post but his cross is far too overhit and sails out for a Leicester goal-kick, which Ward pumps down the pitch towards Iheanacho.

8'

Zorya have started this game the better of the two sides, with Ward forced into making his early save from Kochergin, who looks like the hosts' main attacking threat down the left wing. Under then finds space down the other end, but his shot does not trouble Vasilj.

7'

Nazaryna cannot lift the free-kick over the wall and then Ndidi makes a great block on the edge of the area to give the hosts the first corner of the match.

6'

Kochergin once again has lots of room on the left, this time playing in Kabaev, who is fouled by Ndidi to earn the hosts a free-kick in a good position near the edge of the D.

5'

Under and Iheanacho both leave a driven pass in the middle of the park before Abu Hanna ends up in the floor, due to a collision with the Nigerian striker. After a quick stoppage in play, the referee gets the game back underway.

3'

SAVE! Kochergin is offered acres of space as he runs at Pereira, cutting in on his right foot before drilling an effort towards Ward's near post. However, the Leicester goalkeeper gets down well to save smartly and parry away the danger.

2'

Morgan is called into action early on to head clear a long pass before Justin sends a wayward pass well out of play from his inverted left wing-back position.

1'

Referee Espen Eskas blows his whistle to get this Europa League fixture underway!

-

The players are making their way out onto the pitch and shortly kick-off will be upon us.

-

The hosts have lost all three of their European meetings with English opponents without scoring, including a 0-3 loss against Rodgers' side in the reverse fixture.

-

Brendan Rodgers makes several changes to his side that played Fulham. Pereira plays for the first time since March after his cruciate ligament injury, while Soyuncu and Ndidi also return from injury. Nelson, if brought on, will become the fifth youngest Foxes’ debutant.

-

Viktor Skripnik makes two changes to the team that defeated Mynai at the weekend, with Gladkiy set to lead the line against this rotated Leicester side.

-

SUBS: Nampalys Mendy, Thakgalo Leshabele, Ayoze Perez, Marc Albrighton, Luke Thomas, Wesley Fofana, Christian Fuchs, James Maddison, Eldin Jakupovic, Shane Flynn, Jakub Stolarcyzk, Ben Nelson.

-

LEICESTER CITY (4-2-3-1): Danny Ward; Ricardo Pereira, Caglar Soyuncu, Wes Morgan, James Justin; Wilfred Ndidi, Hamza Choudhury; Cengiz Under, Harvey Barnes, Dennis Praet; Kelechi Iheanacho.

-

SUBS: Dmytro Matsapura, Mihailo Perovic, Maxim Lunev, Danylo Alefirenko, Sergiy Gryn, Maksym Agapov, Mykyta Shevchenko, Dmytro Piddubnyi, Allahyar Sayyadmanesh.

-

ZORYA LUHANSK (4-3-3): Nikola Vasilj; Denis Favorov, Dmitriy Ivanisenya, Joel Abu Hanna, Andrejs Cigankiks; Vladislav Kochergin, Vladlen Yurchenko, Yehor Nazaryna; Vladyslav Kabaev, Olexandr Gladkiy, Artem Gromov.

-

After qualifying last week, courtesy of late drama in Braga, the Foxes may well rotate their side here as they look ahead to a busy festive period. Last time out, the hosts were 3-0 victors over AEK Athens but still remain bottom of the group.

-

Hello and welcome to live coverage of the Europa League Group G fixture between Zorya Luhansk and Leicester City.

Lineups

Team Stats

Zorya Luhansk

Leicester City

Team Ranks

Europa League

Jan

Personalize