Dial 999 - Emergency Services

Last updated : 10 April 2011 By Tony Scholes
Andre Bikey
Whilst not a must win game, this represented one of our last hopes to get back on track for the play offs but in the end it proved to be our heaviest away defeat of the season and in truth in the closing stages the scoreline could have been even more embarrassing.

We offered precious little to the game once we'd fallen behind midway through the first half and once the penalty went in the whole afternoon was truly awful as Leicester took total control against a Burnley side that was bereft of anything positive.

This at a ground where we have such a good record and until yesterday hadn't even conceded a goal, but we can have no complaints whatsoever about coming home with this hiding.

Manager Eddie Howe really shuffled things up after the home defeat to Ipswich. Out went Lee Grant, Shane Duffy and Ross Wallace whilst Marvin Bartley was out injured. Their replacements were Brian Jensen, Michael Duff, Wade Elliott and Chris Iwelumo and we lined up with Iwelumo up front with the three behind being Nathan Delfouneso and Jay Rodriguez (right and left) with Chris Eagles in the central role whilst Elliott partnered captain Dean Marney in the midfield.

It's difficult to recall now but we actually started the game quite well and could so easily have had an early lead. Delfouneso got down the right and played in Eagles in the very first attack but the Burnley player faltered and allowed goalkeeper Chris Weale to get there ahead of him.

Weale certainly had more to do a few minutes later as he clawed away a Delfouneso shot that looked to be heading into the corner. Then, a right wing corner taken by Brian Easton caused chaos in the penalty box as Leicester failed to clear which resulted in a shot being blocked.

So far, so good, but after that it just about came to a halt.

Leicester hadn't been offering much but midway through the half they got through us too easily. Diomansy Kamara was involved and then got onto the ball clear in the box and made no mistake. The first crucial goal had gone Leicester's way and from there on in they were the better side, and by some distance.

We managed to get to half time with no further damage and the hope that we might sort things out but just a few minutes into the second half and referee Mike Dean was pointing to the penalty spot. It went against Andre Bikey for a foul on Kamara who was heading nowhere.

The Clarets' defender protested his innocence to the assistant referee, throwing the ball down right in front of him in a tantrum so reminiscent of his behaviour in the play off game two years ago. Dean came over and I feared the worst but Bikey got away with a yellow. Was it a penalty? Yes, a clear one, he caught him.

Paul Gallagher, the former Blackburn player who had threatened to silence the Burnley boo boys during the week, fired the penalty to Jensen's bottom left. The 'keeper guessed right but the ball got through him and in.

That was the end for Burnley and it really was a matter of how many more Leicester got. It should probably have been more than the two they did get with two terrific finishes. Having said that, I'm not convinced that we couldn't have done anything about Gallagher's second and Leicester's third. It was well struck but from over 30-yards it was allowed to go in far too easily.

Dean was again lenient here. Gallagher opted to do his celebrating this time right in front of the Burnley fans but was allowed to get away with it. Other referees would have produced a card but there could be no complaints this time; Dean had an outstanding game in the middle and I wish some of these other referees would see the way he employs advantage and does all he can to keep the game moving.

3-0, and we made some changes. They didn't have any effect to be honest and Leicester were murdering us by this time. The fourth came not much later; a superb finish from Patrick Van Aanholt which wrapped up the scoring.

That signalled a rush for the exits from the away end leaving few of us in there to suffer the closing stages when Leicester came oh so close twice to getting a fifth and we got the now, almost obligatory, arrival of Graham Alexander to get his appearances up to a thousand. What a shame he's getting there this way, without making any real contribution.

The Burnley fans were very subdued at the end. Leicester were certainly better than some of the teams we've played recently but this was a worrying performance. There was just about nothing there to enthuse over and it was difficult to find even one player who had done himself justice over the 90 minutes.

After an early run of good results it's getting a bit tougher now for manager Eddie Howe who has, since the 1-0 win at Hull, seen us pick up just one point from five games.

But looking back at yesterday it has to be pointed out that he was without Danny Fox, Jack Cork and Marvin Bartley as well as strikers Martin Paterson and Charlie Austin, both out with long term injuries. He's nowhere near full strength and my only criticism is of him having three central defenders on the bench when he could have included Wes Fletcher who was with the squad yesterday.

I've read so much criticism of the manager since returning home, most of it unfair and some of it just downright ridiculous. You would think some are hell bent on forcing another manager out of our club.

It might well be worth them noting that in his first 14 league games in charge we've won a total of 21 points. Only one Burnley manager since Jimmy Mullen (Owen Coyle with 22 points) has bettered that.

For goodness sake, give him time and give him a chance. It was horrible yesterday, no one can deny that, but there is a long way to go and a lot of games to be played before anyone can realistically start trying to judge Eddie Howe.

It certainly won't be any time this season, a season that now looks absolutely certain to end with our last league game against Cardiff in four week's time.

The teams yesterday were;

Leicester: Chris Weale, Angelo Miguel Vitor, Souleymane Bamba, Ben Mee, Patrick Van Aanholt, Richie Wellens, Matt Oakley (Yuki Abe 79), Andy King, Diomansy Kamara (Darius Vassell 73), Yakubu (Steve Howard 73), Paul Gallagher. Subs not used: Ricardo Pereira, Joao Teixeira, Lloyd Dyer, Bruno Berner.

Burnley: Brian Jensen, Tyrone Mears, Michael Duff, Andre Bikey, Brian Easton, Dean Marney, Wade Elliott (Ross Wallace 73), Nathan Delfouneso, Chris Eagles, Jay Rodriguez (Graham Alexander 86), Chris Iwelumo (Steven Thompson 73). Subs not used: Lee Grant, David Edgar, Clarke Carlisle, Shane Duffy.
Yellow Cards: Dean Marney, Jay Rodriguez, Andre Bikey.

Referee: Mike Dean (Wirral).

Attendance: 24,039 (including 1,091 Clarets).