Leicester are three points clear of Leeds at the top of the Sky Bet Championship after Jamie Vardy’s double earned his side a 2-2 draw at play-off chasing Hull.
Enzo Maresca’s men had to work hard against the Tigers and fell behind when Fabio Carvalho, who had earlier missed from the penalty spot, scored after 16 minutes.
But Leicester showed plenty of resolve and equalised through Vardy’s contentious penalty after 31 minutes.
Hull again nudged in front when Annas Zaroury let fly from the edge of the penalty box on 61 minutes, but Vardy scored a trademark second just two minutes later to secure the Foxes an important point.
Having ended a three-match losing run with victory at Sunderland on Tuesday, Leicester supporters might have expected their side to kick on at the MKM Stadium.
But they were surprisingly placid in the first half and should have conceded after just six minutes.
Regan Slater’s lung-busting run from deep caught the visitors unawares, with Stephy Mavididi nudging the Hull midfielder off his stride inside the penalty area.
Referee Samuel Barrott awarded a penalty, but Carvalho’s spot-kick was complacent, and Mats Hermansen impressively stood his ground.
Hull’s promising start was rewarded soon afterwards, though, as Carvalho atoned for his penalty miss with a fine goal.
Wout Faes conceded possession in an awful area, though Hamza Choudhury did the Leicester defender few favours with a rash pass.
The Liverpool loan signing had lots of work to do, but Carvalho was direct and brave before striking low under Hermansen, who perhaps went to ground too early.
Leicester needed a spark, which arrived after 20 minutes.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s strike from the edge of the box was not especially pleasing on the eye, but it squirmed from the reach of Ryan Allsop and on to the base of the left post.
Dewsbury-Hall’s attempt served notice of Leicester’s growing influence upon the game, which was finally balanced at the break after Vardy scored from the spot.
Jean Michael Seri was adjudged by Barrott to have fouled Abdul Fatawu, who went over rather too easily.
Vardy made no mistake with a neat penalty into the right corner.
Leicester improved thereafter, but they were far from at their best and again fell behind when Zaroury expertly powered home with his left foot from the edge of the box.
But with celebrating home fans still returning to their seats, Vardy scored again.
Fatawu’s smart pass from the right cut bisected Hull centre-backs Jacob Greaves and Alfie Jones to find an onrushing Vardy in his favourite position.
After having put Allsop on his backside with his first touch, the former England international artfully switched onto his right before smashing the ball into an unguarded net.
Neutrals anticipating a grandstand finale were left disappointed as both sides cancelled one another out during a tactical final half-hour in which Leicester finished strongly but did not do enough to win an absorbing game of football.
Leverkusen star Wirtz named Bundesliga Player of the Year
Florian Wirtz played a starring role for Bayer Leverkusen this season and has been named the Bundesliga Player of the Year.
Wirtz scored 11 goals and provided a further 11 assists on the way to helping Leverkusen win their first-ever top-flight title.
The forward was pivotal in Leverkusen’s title charge as they became the first German team to complete an unbeaten season.
Only Victor Boniface has scored more goals than Wirtz this campaign, netting 14 times, while his tally of 11 assists is second only to Alejandro Grimaldo (13) across the Bundesliga.
Wirtz came off the bench to score a hat-trick in Leverkusen’s 5-0 win over Werder Bremen in April which clinched the title with five games remaining.
The Bundesliga champions still have the German Cup final on Saturday against Kaiserslautern, which follows the Europa League final against Atalanta on Wednesday.
Wirtz played a critical role in helping Leverkusen reach their third European final, having been involved in eight goals in the Europa League this season (four goals, four assists), the most of any player in the team.
He has also created 28 chances from open play in the competition, a tally only five players can better in a Europa League campaign, most recently Amin Younes for Ajax in 2016-17 (30).
In all competitions, Leverkusen’s unbeaten run stretches to 51 matches, as they aim to finish an unbeaten season with a treble.
Kane injury doubt for England Euro 2024 squad
Harry Kane may be a doubt for England’s Euro 2024 squad as he continues to struggle with a back problem.
Gareth Southgate is due to name his preliminary squad for Euro 2024 on Tuesday, ahead of upcoming friendlies against Bosnia and Herzegovina and Iceland.
The England captain missed the final two Bundesliga games of the season after going off towards the end of Bayern Munich’s Champions League semi-final second leg against Real Madrid.
Thomas Tuchel confirmed prior to their final match against Hoffenheim that Kane was back in England to undergo treatment.
When later asked again about the nature of the striker’s injury, Tuchel admitted that Kane had been struggling for a couple of weeks.
"In Madrid, it was borderline. We tried injections and treatments. The back has completely closed.
"It has gotten worse and kept breaking out in small, everyday movements. There's no chance he's even training."
Kane scored 36 league goals in his debut campaign for Bayern, though due to the injury, he finished five adrift of Robert Lewandowski’s single-season goal record of 41, set in 2019-20.
The final announcement of Southgate's 26-man squad will be revealed on June 7, ahead of the tournament opener against Serbia on June 16.
Pochettino prioritising continuity as Chelsea draw up transfer plans
Mauricio Pochettino feels continuity will be key for Chelsea ahead of his second season in charge, ruling out the prospect of another clear-out at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea clinched European qualification on the final day of the Premier League season on Sunday, a 2-1 win over Bournemouth ensuring they beat Newcastle United and Manchester United to sixth place.
The Blues finished the campaign with five straight victories, the first time they have achieved that feat since doing so in March 2022 under Thomas Tuchel.
A positive end to Pochettino's debut campaign has quietened talk of his job being under threat, and he wants to see evolution rather than revolution ahead of 2024-25.
"Does the club need new signings? Always, you can improve," Pochettino said after Sunday's victory.
"They are going to be much better next season because they will have one year of experience, a tough experience.
"That is the advantage of being solid and consistent and not making too many changes.
"Next season, if we keep 80 to 85 per cent of the squad, for sure it is a big step forward because it is about having continuity in the ideas and the knowledge between them. That is important for the club.
"That is a club decision. Like it was from the beginning, we [the coaching staff] are going to be there to help and if not, we are going to do our job."
Chelsea only lost one of their final 15 matches of the Premier League season (nine wins, five draws), with that defeat coming by a 5-0 scoreline at Arsenal in April.
Only Manchester City, Arsenal (16 each) and Liverpool (12) won more Premier League games than Chelsea's 10 between the turn of the year and the end of the campaign, with their total of 43 goals in that time ranking them fifth among all teams in the division.
Chelsea's overall tally of 77 goals in 2023-24 was their third-most in a Premier League season, behind only their title-winning campaigns of 2009-10 (103) and 2016-17 (85).
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