Jeremy Sarmiento’s first goal for the club grabbed a deserved late point for the Blues as Town returned to second in the Championship following a 1-1 draw with leaders Leicester City at the King Power Stadium. Town had gone behind to a 31st-minute Leif Davis own goal but the Blues improved after the break and on-loan Brighton forward Sarmiento followed-up Massimo Luongo’s saved shot to claim the draw in the penultimate minute.
Luongo returned to the Town line-up having missed the 2-1 win at home to Sunderland just over a week ago due to an ankle injury with Jack Taylor dropping to the bench.
Elsewhere, the team was the same as the one which started against the Black Cats other than Marcus Harness coming in for Nathan Broadhead, who was also among the subs.
Skipper Sam Morsy was again absent as he served the final game of his two-match ban.
For Leicester, whose manager Enzo Maresca was serving a one-game touchline ban, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall was fit enough to start having been a doubt with a knock picked up in their last game, the 3-1 defeat at Coventry.
Cesare Casadei, who has been recalled by parent club Chelsea, and Abdul Fatawu, suspended having been sent off against the Sky Blues, were replaced by Hamza Choudhury and Kasey McAteer.
Veteran frontman Jamie Vardy returned to the bench, having been out of action since December with a knee injury.
Town won a corner within the first 30 seconds but it was the Foxes who would cause the first moment of defensive concern in the third minute, Lewis Travis missing the ball and allowing Tom Cannon to break into the area. Harry Clarke slid in to dispossess the former Everton striker and Luongo subsequently got in McAteer’s way after the loose ball had run to the Leicester wideman and Vaclav Hladky was able to claim.
On 12, Harry Winks, who played for Blues boss Kieran McKenna in the Tottenham academy, hit a shot which deflected through to Hladky from the edge of the box after Town had failed to properly clear their lines.
There was a bigger scare for the Blues in the 16th minute when Foxes skipper Ricardo Pereira cut out an under-hit Wes Burns pass to Travis and burst down the left flank before cutting back to an untracked Dewsbury-Hall, who scuffed his shot well wide when he will feel he should have done better.
A minute later, Town lost possession midway inside their half as they were passing out from the back and eventually Cannon was fed in on the left of the box but Luke Woolfenden got across to block.
Despite those chances, it hadn’t been entirely Leicester with the Blues also having spells on the ball, although without being given time to pass out from the back in comfort - and giving away possession too easily on occasion - and having failed to cause the home side’s backline any problems.
Hladky was forced into his first save in the 26th minute when Choudhury hit a curling 20-yard effort towards the left corner of the Czech’s net but the keeper got cross to comfortably palm wide.
Town carved out their first chance of the match on 28, Davis crossing low from the left and Kayden Jackson turning into the path of Conor Chaplin, but the stand-in skipper’s shot flew well over.
But three minutes later, the home side took the lead. Stephy Mavididi and Ricardo exchanged passes on the left of the box, the wideman crossed, Hladky got a hand to it and the unfortunate Davis was unable to avoid diverting it into his own net from a couple of feet.
McAteer struck a shot which deflected wide for a corner on 37, from which Jannik Vestergaard nodded straight at Hladky.
A minute later, Ricardo missed a great opportunity to make it 2-0 when Woolfenden’s under-powered headed clearance landed at his feet 12 yards out but the home captain stabbed his low shot well wide. On 42, McAteer curled a strike well over.
In the final scheduled minute, Hladky saved across to his right from Cannon’s low shot from just outside the area, the loose ball falling to Wout Faes, who was in an offside position.
As the half moved into one additional minute, Burns cut inside from the left but sent his shot deep into the stand.
That was the last action of a half from which the Foxes deserved to be in front having been in charge for the most part, creating most of the game’s opportunities, even if Davis was a little unfortunate to concede the own goal.
Town had struggled to cause the Leicester defence many problems, finding it hard to pass their way out from the back and perhaps not positive enough when getting into dangerous areas.
The shots over the bar from Chaplin and Burns were the nearest to threatening home keeper Mads Hermansen’s goal.
As they had done in the first half, the Blues won a corner within 30 seconds of the restart. The ball was played to Luongo, who crossed deep to Clarke breaking beyond the far post but the full-back was unable to nod back into the danger zone.
Town continued to pin the Foxes back in their final third, winning two more corners. After the second had been cleared, Clarke nodded back into the left of the box towards the breaking Burns, whose shot was well saved by Hermansen, the keeper conceding another corner.
However, as the game passed the 50-minute mark, Leicester won a series of corners from which they weren’t far away from a second goal. First Travis diverted Justin James’s header away from the line, then Luongo blocked McAteer’s shot.
On the hour, Travis was shown the game’s first yellow card for a foul on Ricardo, then a minute later on the on-loan Blackburn man and Harness were replaced by Taylor and Sarmiento.
Three minutes after the changes, Hladky found Clarke in acres of space down the right. The full-back broke towards goal and might well have shot but instead cut the ball inside and Choudhury was able to cut it out.
Soon after, Luongo was somewhat harshly booked after Faes headed his shoulder, then on 69 Clarke joined him for a firm but fair tackle on Dewsbury-Hall.
In the 71st minute, a corner reached Mavididi on the left of the box from where he struck a shot which Hladky palmed onto George Edmundson, then Cannon sent an overhead kick well over the bar.
A minute later, Town made two more changes, Broadhead and Omari Hutchinson taking over from Jackson and Chaplin.
Broadhead was straight into the action, first losing the ball on the edge of the box on the left, then hitting a shot against a defender on the other side but with Burns having been in space to his right and a better option.
On 75, Hladky saved Cannon’s well-struck shot from not far outside the area away to his left.
Town had been much better since the break and continued to knock on the door, Choudhury cutting out a Broadhead cross from the left towards Burns in the 77th minute.
Within a minute, Broadhead hit another shot against a defender after good work from Hutchinson with Burns again in a better position to his right.
Leicester made their first changes in the 81st minute, Vardy and Yunus Akgun replacing Cannon and Dewsbury-Hall.
Town continued to look for the equaliser, Clarke crossing low from the right and Justin cleared against Vestergaard and out for a corner, the Blues claiming in vain for a penalty, referee Josh Smith probably making the right decision.
From the flag-kick, Edmundson beat Hermansen to it in the air but sent his header looping wide.
The Blues had had most of the chances in the second half, but on 84 Leicester weren’t far from a second, Hladky reacting very quickly to dive at McAteer’s feet from sub Akgun’s pass. Town subsequently broke and Ricardo was booked for pulling back Davis.
The goal Town’s second-half display deserved finally came in the 89th minute. Broadhead teed-up Luongo on the edge of the area, the Australian’s shot was parried by Hermansen and Sarmiento was quickest to the loose ball the slam the ball under the keeper and into the net, the Ecuadorian international’s first goal for the club.
Shortly before the final whistle, Leicester swapped McAteer, who had suffered a knock when Hladky dived at his feet, for Marc Albrighton.
In the end the game was a very similar story to the corresponding fixture at Portman Road on Boxing Day.
Leicester were the better team in the first half of both matches with the Blues perhaps showing the league leaders too much respect.
But on both occasions Town came out after the break looking a different prospect. Subs Sarmiento, Broadhead and Hutchinson all made an impact with the Foxes appearing to tire, and the late goal was well deserved when it came and had the game run for another 10 minutes, the Blues were looking much the more likely winner.
At the other end, Hladky made some really important saves in both halves.
The point moves Town back up to second, a point ahead of Southampton in third and still seven behind Leicester.
The Blues are next in action on Saturday when they face National League South Maidstone in the FA Cup fourth round at Portman Road before a return to Championship action the following weekend at Preston North End.
Leicester: Hermansen, Faes, Vestergaard, Justin, Choudhury, Winks, Ricardo (c), Dewsbury-Hall (Akgun 81), McAteer (Albrighton 90), Mavididi, Cannon (Vardy 81). Unused: Stolarczyk, Coady, Doyle, Praet, Marcal, Nelson.
Town: Hladky, Clarke, Woolfenden, Edmundson, Davis, Travis (Taylor 61), Luongo, Burns, Chaplin (c) (Hutchinson 72), Harness (Sarmiento 61), Jackson (Broadhead 72). Unused: Walton, Tuanzebe, Ball, Humphreys, Hutchinson, Aluko, Broadhead. Referee: Josh Smith (Bedfordshire).