James Maddison scored two beauties as Leicester made light work of Danish side Randers with a 7-2 rout on aggregate to reach the last 16 of the Europa Conference League.
Brendan Rodgers’ men came into this knockout stage play-off round after finishing third in their Europa League group, but navigated the tie with few issues.
Holding a 4-1 lead from the first leg, it took Leicester just 100 seconds to extend their advantage as Harvey Barnes broke clear and curled a delightful finish into the far corner.
The England international could have added another in the second half but fired wide from an acute angle.
Compatriot Maddison then netted twice in the space of four minutes with a free-kick into the top corner and a sumptuous curling strike from 25 yards.
Randers did pull a goal back late on when Kasper Schmeichel’s heavy touch on the ball allowed Stephen Odey to nip in and convert a gift from close range.
The draw for the Europa Conference League takes place on Friday when the Foxes will be picked out of the pot against a group winner.
Tougher tests to come for Foxes
After his side’s Europa League exit at the hands of Napoli in December, boss Rodgers said he did not “even know” what the Europa Conference League was.
Now he does.
Uefa’s newly-formed third club competition represents Leicester’s only chance of claiming silverware this season after suffering a shock exit in the FA Cup, being knocked out of the Carabao Cup and lying in the bottom half of the Premier League.
Their overall form has been poor this season with Rodgers criticising his players’ performance in the FA Cup loss at Championship side Nottingham Forest, though the side have not been helped by injuries to key players.
They will be glad to have faced Randers as their two victories in the last eight games in all competitions have been against the Danish outfit. The success also ended a run of four straight defeats away from home.
Though they were in a commanding position heading into the second leg, Rodgers still selected a strong side with mostly first-team regulars and the contest was ended courtesy of Barnes’ coolly-taken goal.
It was a morale-boosting showing for Maddison and a decent performance was capped off by two well-taken goals in the second period.
Randers, who lie sixth in the Danish top flight, had numerous chances and, although Schmeichel made a stunning reflex save to deny Odey, the goalkeeper’s blunder six minutes from time gave the home fans something to cheer on the night.
Who could Leicester be drawn against?
AZ Alkmaar (Ned), Basel (Swi), Copenhagen (Den), Feyenoord (Ned), Gent (Bel), LASK (Aut), Rennes (Fra), Roma (Ita).
Supporters ‘pushed the team’ until the end
Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers told BT Sport: “In European football or the Premier League, there are moments in the game when you have to defend. We got exactly the start we wanted, Harvey Barnes scored a great goal and that gave us confidence in the game. Our ball possession was not so good in the first half, the pitch was not so good and they dealt with it better in the second half.
On James Maddison’s goals: “From a dead-ball situation, it was a very good goal. He scores goals of incredible quality and showed that. Two wonderful finishes, different sides so the goalkeeper was unsure where he was going to go.
“You are in the competition so you want to go as far as you can. For the supporters to come out here, they were non-stop singing. It was cold and without their tops on, they pushed the team through to the end.”
Line-ups
Randers FC
Formation 4-4-2
- 1Carlgren
- 7KallesøeSubstituted forBundgaardat 61′minutes
- 8PiesingerBooked at 67mins
- 2GravesSubstituted forAnderssonat 61′minutes
- 15Kopplin
- 9AnkersenSubstituted forTibblingat 76′minutes
- 6Johnsen
- 14LauenborgSubstituted forBundgaardat 68′minutes
- 10KehindeSubstituted forat 90′minutes
- 90Odey
- 20Hammershøy-MistratiSubstituted forKlysnerat 77′minutes
Substitutes
- 3Andersson
- 5Andersson
- 12Tibbling
- 16Enggård
- 17Lauridsen
- 18Klysner
- 19Bundgaard
- 22Nybo
- 25Dakir
- 39Jensen
- 40Bundgaard
- 44Brock-Madsen
Leicester
Formation 4-3-3
- 1Schmeichel
- 11AlbrightonSubstituted forChoudhuryat 60′minutes
- 18Amartey
- 23Vestergaard
- 33Thomas
- 8TielemansSubstituted forSoumaréat 60′minutes
- 25NdidiBooked at 87mins
- 10Maddison
- 37Lookman
- 14Iheanacho
- 7BarnesSubstituted forPérezat 60′minutes
Substitutes
- 4Söyüncü
- 12Ward
- 17Pérez
- 20Choudhury
- 22Dewsbury-Hall
- 29Daka
- 35Jakupovic
- 42Soumaré
Live Text
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Match ends, Randers FC 1, Leicester City 3.
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Second Half ends, Randers FC 1, Leicester City 3.
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Corner, Randers FC. Conceded by Luke Thomas.
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Tosin Kehinde went off injured after Randers FC had used all subs.
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Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
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Foul by Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City).
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Tosin Kehinde (Randers FC) wins a free kick on the right wing.
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Attempt missed. Tobias Klysner (Randers FC) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right following a fast break.
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Goal! Randers FC 1, Leicester City 3. Stephen Odey (Randers FC) left footed shot from very close range to the bottom left corner.
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Attempt saved. Tosin Kehinde (Randers FC) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Simon Piesinger.
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Foul by Ademola Lookman (Leicester City).
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Björn Kopplin (Randers FC) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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James Maddison (Leicester City) wins a free kick on the left wing.
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Foul by Simon Tibbling (Randers FC).
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James Maddison (Leicester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Lasse Johnsen (Randers FC).
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Attempt missed. Lasse Johnsen (Randers FC) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses the top right corner.
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Attempt saved. Stephen Odey (Randers FC) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the left is saved in the bottom left corner.
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Corner, Randers FC. Conceded by Daniel Amartey.
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Attempt blocked. Stephen Odey (Randers FC) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
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James Maddison has scored 11 goals for Leicester this season, ending a run of six games without nettingJames Maddison scored two beauties as Leicester made light work of Danish side Randers with a 7-2 rout on aggregate to reach the last 16 of the Europa Conference League.Brendan Rodgers’ men came into this knockout stage play-off round after finishing third in their Europa League group, but navigated the tie with few issues.Holding a 4-1 lead from the first leg, it took Leicester just 100 seconds to extend their advantage as Harvey Barnes broke clear and curled a delightful finish into the far corner.The England international could have added another in the second half but fired wide from an acute angle.Compatriot Maddison then netted twice in the space of four minutes with a free-kick into the top corner and a sumptuous curling strike from 25 yards.Randers did pull a goal back late on when Kasper Schmeichel’s heavy touch on the ball allowed Stephen Odey to nip in and convert a gift from close range.The draw for the Europa Conference League takes place on Friday when the Foxes will be picked out of the pot against a group winner.Follow Thursday’s European football actionGo straight to all the best Leicester City contentTougher tests to come for FoxesAfter his side’s Europa League exit at the hands of Napoli in December, boss Rodgers said he did not “even know” what the Europa Conference League was.Now he does.Uefa’s newly-formed third club competition represents Leicester’s only chance of claiming silverware this season after suffering a shock exit in the FA Cup, being knocked out of the Carabao Cup and lying in the bottom half of the Premier League.Their overall form has been poor this season with Rodgers criticising his players’ performance in the FA Cup loss at Championship side Nottingham Forest, though the side have not been helped by injuries to key players.They will be glad to have faced Randers as their two victories in the last eight games in all competitions have been against the Danish outfit. The success also ended a run of four straight defeats away from home.Though they were in a commanding position heading into the second leg, Rodgers still selected a strong side with mostly first-team regulars and the contest was ended courtesy of Barnes’ coolly-taken goal.It was a morale-boosting showing for Maddison and a decent performance was capped off by two well-taken goals in the second period.Randers, who lie sixth in the Danish top flight, had numerous chances and, although Schmeichel made a stunning reflex save to deny Odey, the goalkeeper’s blunder six minutes from time gave the home fans something to cheer on the night.Who could Leicester be drawn against?AZ Alkmaar (Ned), Basel (Swi), Copenhagen (Den), Feyenoord (Ned), Gent (Bel), LASK (Aut), Rennes (Fra), Roma (Ita).Supporters ‘pushed the team’ until the endLeicester manager Brendan Rodgers told BT Sport: “In European football or the Premier League, there are moments in the game when you have to defend. We got exactly the start we wanted, Harvey Barnes scored a great goal and that gave us confidence in the game. Our ball possession was not so good in the first half, the pitch was not so good and they dealt with it better in the second half.On James Maddison’s goals: “From a dead-ball situation, it was a very good goal. He scores goals of incredible quality and showed that. Two wonderful finishes, different sides so the goalkeeper was unsure where he was going to go.”You are in the competition so you want to go as far as you can. For the supporters to come out here, they were non-stop singing. It was cold and without their tops on, they pushed the team through to the end.”Line-upsRanders FCFormation 4-4-21Carlgren7Kallesøe8Piesinger2Graves15Kopplin9Ankersen6Johnsen14Lauenborg10Kehinde90Odey20Hammershøy-Mistrati1Carlgren7KallesøeSubstituted forBundgaardat 61’minutes8PiesingerBooked at 67mins2GravesSubstituted forAnderssonat 61’minutes15Kopplin9AnkersenSubstituted forTibblingat 76’minutes6Johnsen14LauenborgSubstituted forBundgaardat 68’minutes10KehindeSubstituted forat 90’minutes90Odey20Hammershøy-MistratiSubstituted forKlysnerat 77’minutesSubstitutes3Andersson5Andersson12Tibbling16Enggård17Lauridsen18Klysner19Bundgaard22Nybo25Dakir39Jensen40Bundgaard44Brock-MadsenLeicesterFormation 4-3-31Schmeichel11Albrighton18Amartey23Vestergaard33Thomas8Tielemans25Ndidi10Maddison37Lookman14Iheanacho7Barnes1Schmeichel11AlbrightonSubstituted forChoudhuryat 60’minutes18Amartey23Vestergaard33Thomas8TielemansSubstituted forSoumaréat 60’minutes25NdidiBooked at 87mins10Maddison37Lookman14Iheanacho7BarnesSubstituted forPérezat 60’minutesSubstitutes4Söyüncü12Ward17Pérez20Choudhury22Dewsbury-Hall29Daka35Jakupovic42SoumaréLive TextMatch ends, Randers FC 1, Leicester City 3.Second Half ends, Randers FC 1, Leicester City 3.Corner, Randers FC. Conceded by Luke Thomas.Tosin Kehinde went off injured after Randers FC had used all subs.Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.Foul by Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City).Tosin Kehinde (Randers FC) wins a free kick on the right wing.Attempt missed. Tobias Klysner (Randers FC) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right following a fast break.Goal! Randers FC 1, Leicester City 3. Stephen Odey (Randers FC) left footed shot from very close range to the bottom left corner.Attempt saved. Tosin Kehinde (Randers FC) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Simon Piesinger.Foul by Ademola Lookman (Leicester City).Björn Kopplin (Randers FC) wins a free kick in the defensive half.James Maddison (Leicester City) wins a free kick on the left wing.Foul by Simon Tibbling (Randers FC).James Maddison (Leicester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.Foul by Lasse Johnsen (Randers FC).Attempt missed. Lasse Johnsen (Randers FC) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses the top right corner.Attempt saved. Stephen Odey (Randers FC) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the left is saved in the bottom left corner.Corner, Randers FC. Conceded by Daniel Amartey.Attempt blocked. Stephen Odey (Randers FC) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.Our coverage of Leicester City is bigger and better than ever before – here’s everything you need to know to make sure you never miss a momentEverything Leicester – go straight to all the best content