Riyad Mahrez struck to give Leicester City a third consecutive Champions League victory as the fairy-tale English Premier League champions edged Copenhagen 1-0 on Tuesday.
Mahrez’s athletic 40th-minute volley at the King Power Stadium left Claudio Ranieri’s men five points clear in Group G with a 100 percent record and they are still to concede a goal in the competition.
With Porto winning 2-1 at Club Brugge KV in the other group game, Leicester will be assured of a place in the last 16 if they win away to Copenhagen in their next match on Nov. 2.
Photo: Reuters
“We’re in a good position now,” said Ranieri, whose side are guaranteed at least a place in the Europa League knockout phase.
“We knew it would be tough. Copenhagen tried until the end. It was difficult at the start, but the performance was good,” he said.
Leicester are struggling domestically, their title defense effectively over after four defeats in eight games, but in Europe they are rekindling memories of their 5,000-1 march to glory last season.
Their tally of points in the Champions League — nine — is one more than they have amassed in the English Premier League.
Ranieri was particularly indebted to his Copenhagen-born goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, who brilliantly swatted away a shot from Andreas Cornelius with seconds of normal time remaining.
“It was an amazing save from Kasper Schmeichel at the end,” Ranieri said. “We deserved the clean sheet tonight.”
It was a first defeat in 24 matches for Stale Solbakken’s Copenhagen, but they remain in second place ahead of next month’s return fixture.
“I am disappointed with the result,” Solbakken said. “We slept one time and it cost us the game, but the players have a good feeling we can beat them in Parken [Stadium] in 14 days.”
With Leicester’s fans a little subdued following another heavy domestic defeat — 3-0 at Chelsea on Saturday — it was left to Copenhagen’s supporters to create the pre-match atmosphere.
The travelling fans were in fine voice and the Champions League anthem was accompanied by a burst of red flares in the away end.
European soccer’s governing body UEFA said in a statement that the Danish champions had been charged with the “setting off of fireworks” and the case would be dealt with on Nov. 17.
Leicester were not charged.
UEFA has a strict ban on flares and fireworks in stadiums, although many supporters said on social media that they were impressed after Copenhagen supporters put on what amounted to a full-blown pyrotechnics display.
Others wondered how stewards could have allowed so many fireworks into the stadium while confiscating sandwiches and other small items off fans at previous fixtures.
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