Town dropped to 19th in the Premier League table after a 2-0 defeat to Leicester City at the King Power Stadium with Jamie Vardy scoring his 200th goal on his 500th and final appearance for the Foxes, who move above the Blues. Vardy saw the home side into the lead in the 28th minute, then Kasey McAteer adding a second on 69 with Town creating plenty of chances throughout but unable to take any of them with Leif Davis going closest when he struck the post in the first half and had an effort ruled out for offside late on.
Town boss Kieran McKenna made four changes from the team which lost 1-0 at home to Brentford last week with George Hirst, Leif Davis, Jens Cajuste and Jack Clarke returning to the XI.
Hirst came in as the number nine with Liam Delap dropping to the bench, while Davis was back after his three-match ban at left-back with Jacob Greaves moving into the centre and Cameron Burgess out of the squad.
Jens Cajuste returned to the midfield having been managing his ongoing knee injury in recent weeks with Jack Taylor among the subs.
Clarke was on the left of the trio behind Hirst with Conor Chaplin dropping to the bench and Julio Enciso switching to the middle. Nathan Broadhead was among the subs following his spell out with a thigh injury.
Leicester made one change with Boubakary Soumare replacing Oliver Skipp in their midfield.
Vardy started his 500th and final game for the club looking for his 200th goal and fans all round the ground waved flags bearing the legend ‘Thank you Vards’ for some minutes prior to the teams coming out, the 38-year-old former striker leading out the Foxes.
The Blues, in their pink third kit, were the first to threaten in the third minute, Dara O’Shea dinking a ball over the top from deep for Hirst to chase and the Scotland international only just failed to get his toe to it before it ran through to Jakub Stolarczyk in the home goal.
Four minutes later, skipper Sam Morsy fed Enciso, who moved it on to Davis in space on the left. The full-back, whose only Premier League goal came against Leicester at Portman Road, saw his first shot blocked, then, after the ball returned to him, struck an even better effort which cannoned off the inside of the near post and ricocheted across goal and out for a throw on the far side.
Town continued to take the game to the Foxes and in the ninth minute Morsy unleashed a 30-yard strike which flew not too far over Stolarczyk’s bar.
On 17, Enciso worked an opening a few yards outside the box but scraped his shot wide of Stolarczyk’s left post.
After Omari Hutchinson had had his ankle inadvertently and painfully trodden on by Luke Thomas after being brought down by the Leicester wideman, Hirst flicked a header from Morsy’s free-kick beyond the far post.
Vardy had been a largely peripheral figure, Leicester having failed to mount a serious attack, but in the 20th minute Jordan Ayew threaded a pass for him to chase. O’Shea dived in but made no contact with either ball or player, but, with Vardy through on goal, Davis did exceptionally well to get back and drive him wide and his shot hit the side-netting.
Two minutes later, a Bilal El Khannouss free-kick from the right was played into Vardy’s feet in the box with his back to goal but the Foxes’ skipper’s shot was into the netting on the other side of the goal.
Town had been the more threatening side, however, and in the 26th minute they went close again. Davis curled over a deep cross from the left beyond Hirst but found Hutchinson behind him, the former Chelsea man volleying over.
The Blues were made to rue their misses two minutes later when Vardy bagged his perhaps inevitable 200th goal for the Foxes.
After Clarke had slipped when in possession midway inside the Leicester half, the home side broke and James Justin played in the day’s main man, who wrong-footed Alex Palmer with his deft first-time finish across the keeper and into the net.
Vardy celebrated by waving a corner flag at the delighted home supporters before being joined by all his teammates right in front of the Town supporters.
The goal seemed to rock the Blues, who until then had been on top for the most part, and within a minute Ayew waltzed into the area unchallenged, his shot scuffing off O’Shea and going wide, a fortunate escape for Town.
As the half approached the 40-minute mark, Hutchinson crossed from the right and O’Shea’s header caught a defender and looped wide.
The corner came to nothing but two minutes later, Davis, far more involved in attack than almost any game this season, got to the byline and chipped over a cross which reached Hutchinson 10 yards out. The England U21 international chested it down, then volleyed over the bar when he should have been celebrating his fourth goal of the season.
That was the last serious action of a half in which the Blues had been the better side and had had enough chances to put themselves in front prior to Vardy’s goal, Davis having been unlucky to hit the post, while Hutchinson’s late opportunity really should have got them back on terms. As so often this season the Blues had been unable to make the most of their opportunities with Stolarczyk not forced into a serious save.
At the other end, Vardy had had one chance before his goal but other than that and Ayew’s effort immediately after the Foxes had taken the lead, the Blues had limited the home side.
Town began the second half positively, Clarke winning a free-kick on the left after being brought down by McAteer, who was shown the game’s first yellow card. Davis whipped the ball over only just too far in front of Hirst.
Five minutes after the restart, Enciso beat Thomas, then cut in and shot low from the right into Stolarczyk’s hands.
Soon after, Hutchinson brought the ball across the edge of the area from the right before hitting a shot which was blocked. Town kept hold of the ball and Enciso stabbed it back towards the middle of the area from the left but found a Leicester defender.
On 55, the Paraguayan shot low but wide of Stolarczyk’s right post after the ball had fallen to him 25 yards out after Clarke had brought it in from the left and had been challenged.
Two minutes later, with Town having dominated the half up to that point, Hutchinson crossed from the right and Cajuste headed over when stretching for the ball.
Town threatened again just before the hour, Clarke breaking into the box, then feeding Cajuste on the left, who crossed low for Enciso, whose shot on the turn from eight yards was blocked.
The on-loan Brighton man had an even better chance having blocked Stolarczyk’s clearance. The ball looped away just beyond the keeper’s right post but the Paraguayan reached it but it spun off his foot into the grateful Stolarczyk’s arms with Hirst frustrated that it hadn’t been laid back to him.
On 62, McAteer hit a low shot which was no trouble for Palmer as Leicester broke with the game becoming more open, before the Blues had another chance, Hutchinson cutting into the box on the right but again his strike hit a defender.
McAteer went close to making it 2-0 in the 64th minute, again breaking forward on the right before hitting a shot across Palmer and off the far post.
Leicester subsequently made a double change, 15-year-old Jeremy Monga and Ricardo Pereira replacing Ayew and Justin.
The Blues had another chance in the 67th minute, Hirst getting behind the defence on the right of the box and, with no option in the middle, shooting from a tight angle but finding Stolarczyk in his way.
Two minutes later, the Foxes doubled their lead. El Khannous brought the ball forward towards the left, then played inside to Wilfried Ndidi, who diverted it first time to McAteer, who smashed a low effort past Palmer at his near post.
Town immediately made quadruple change, Delap, Taylor, Chaplin and Broadhead replacing Hirst, Cajuste, Enciso and Clarke.
The Blues continued to create chances and continued to waste them. In the 77th minute, Hutchinson crossed from the right and Broadhead swept the ball wide from just outside the six-yard box.
Two minutes later, the Foxes replaced Vardy, the 500-appearance, 200-goal man given a standing ovation from fans and a guard of honour by his teammates as he left the field, the PA haling him the club’s greatest ever player. Patson Daka took over, while McAteer was replaced by Jake Evans.
With two minutes of scheduled time remaining, Town switched Morsy for Massimo Luongo and Leicester swapped Ndidi for Skipp.
Town finally found the Foxes net in the final minute, Davis slamming home a volley at the far post, only to be flagged offside. VAR correctly upheld referee Andrew Kitchen’s decision.
The incident summed up the Blues’ afternoon which was brought to an end soon afterwards by referee Kitchen.
Frustrating afternoons have been two-a-penny for Town fans this season as the Blues have struggled to cope with established Premier League sides, often hanging on by their fingernails for long periods before falling to defeat.
This was a frustration of a different kind with the Blues in control of the game for long spells and having more than enough chances to have won the match. Their 20 shots and 31 touches in the opposition penalty area - to the Foxes’ 12 - were both the highest of the season but they were unable to take any of their opportunities.
And it wasn’t as if the shots were speculative efforts, Davis may have been unlucky with his strike off the post but Hutchinson will feel he should have done better with his two volleys and Hirst, Enciso and Broadhead also had chances.
At the other end, it was inevitable Vardy would get one or two chances, Davis defending the first well before the England international sent the majority of the fans in the ground home happy from the second.
McAteer’s second on the break as Town started to commit more men forward in the second half all but sealed the three points and only Leicester’s fourth Premier League home win this season and their second in a row.
The Blues have now gone 11 games without a win at the King Power Stadium since a 2-1 victory under Joe Royle on their first visit on Boxing Day 2002.
The result moves the Foxes three points ahead of Town into 18th - the first time the Blues have been 19th since February 15th - with each position in the division worth around an additional £3 million from the Premier League’s prize pot.
Town, who have a superior goal difference, will hope to move back ahead of them when they host West Ham United in their final Premier League game next Sunday with Leicester at AFC Bournemouth.
Leicester: Stolarczyk, Justin (Ricardo 64), Faes, Coady, Thomas, Ndidi (Skipp 88), Soumare, El Khannouss, McAteer (Evans 80), Ayew (Monga 64), Vardy (c) (Evans 80). Unused: Iversen, Okoli, Kristianesen, Buonanotte.
Town: Palmer, Tuanzebe, O’Shea, Greaves, Davis, Morsy (c) (Luongo 88), Cajuste (Taylor 72), Hutchinson, Enciso (Chaplin 72), Clarke (Broadhead 72), Hirst (Delap 72). Unused: Walton, Woolfenden, Godfrey, Johnson, Luongo. Referee: Andrew Kitchen (Durham). VAR: Neil Davies.