EFL Cup: Leicester squeeze through on penalties
Walsall 0 - 0 Leicester City (Leicester City won 3-0 on penalties)
Leicester City narrowly advanced to the fourth round of the Carabao Cup, overcoming a determined Walsall side on penalties.
Despite being from League Two, Walsall created the better chances during the 90 minutes, but Charlie Lakin and experienced forward Albert Adomah couldn’t capitalise on the best of them.
Leicester’s goalkeeper, Danny Ward, became the hero in the shootout, saving all three of Walsall’s penalties, helping Steve Cooper’s team scrape through after a major scare.
A closer look at what happened at the Bescot Stadium
Cooper made 10 changes for the trip across the Midlands, with Jamie Vardy, Stephy Mavididi, Harry Winks, and Wilfred Ndidi all left out of the squad.
The reshuffled team struggled to find rhythm, and it wasn’t until Abdul Fatawu’s skilful runs in the second half that Leicester began to trouble the hosts. He created two good chances but missed both, and later delivered the cross that led to Facundo Buonanotte's header, which forced Walsall keeper Tommy Simkin into his only serious save of the match.
Ward's heroics started earlier in the game with a crucial save to deny Lakin, who was unmarked just 10 yards out in the first half.
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After the break, Fatawu's poor pass gifted Walsall another golden opportunity, but Adomah pulled his shot wide after being set up by Nathan Lowe.
Walsall, unbeaten at home and sitting third in League Two, had already won two penalty shootouts this season, but this time Ward's brilliance proved too much. He denied Taylor Allen, David Okagbue, and Liam Gordon, while Leicester's Ricardo Pereira, Conor Coady, and Oliver Skipp calmly converted their penalties to send the three-time League Cup champions through to the next round.
The best reaction
Frank, a Leicester fan, wasn't happy with the performance despite the eventual progression: "That was another disappointing performance with slow play, lack of urgency and tenacity, poor pass completion, and inability to retain possession. I think it's going to be a frustrating season unless Cooper sorts things out, but I'm not holding my breath for that."
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Paul, a Walsall fan, gave his thoughts: "We deserve all the praise. We not only defended excellently for 90 minutes but also created the best chances in the game. On the other hand, Leicester were quite poor. They lacked confidence and quality in a team that appeared strong on paper and cost nearly £100m."
