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Brendan Rodgers hails Jamie Vardy as 'world class' following the striker's late winner against Arsenal

Leicester's manager Brendan Rodgers, left, embraces Jamie Vardy as Christian Fuchs, right, watches following the English Premier League soccer match between Arsenal and Leicester City at Emirates Stadium in London, England, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2020. - AP
Leicester's manager Brendan Rodgers, left, embraces Jamie Vardy as Christian Fuchs, right, watches following the English Premier League soccer match between Arsenal and Leicester City at Emirates Stadium in London, England, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2020. - AP

Brendan Rodgers hailed “world class” Jamie Vardy after the Leicester City striker came off the bench to seal his club’s first win at Arsenal since 1973.

Vardy’s late winner was his 11th goal in 12 Premier League matches against Arsenal, the club that once tried to sign him, and his header took Leicester to within one point of the top of the table.

The 33-year-old has been struggling with a calf injury but was deemed fit enough to play the final 30 minutes against an Arsenal side that struggled to create chances despite dominating the ball.

“Our plan was always to bring Jamie into the game and he can stretch it,” said Rodgers. “That is why he is a big player. He makes the big contributions in the big games.That shows you the level he is at, and he is a world class player. I am lucky to have him here.

“We deserved it. We played against a really good side who have players who can run in behind. To keep a clean sheet and play with quality and calmness was good. The boys were outstanding.”

Leicester’s victory ended a run of 27 games without a win at Arsenal and it was their fourth win of the season — their joint-highest return after six games of a top-flight campaign.

They had lost their previous two Premier League matches, at home to West Ham United and Aston Villa, and Vardy said this was a result for them to build on.

“We weathered the storm and we started getting into it,” said Vardy. “We played well and came away with a win. It is big for us but it is just the next game. We had a couple of bad results and we just wanted to put it right.”

Arsenal were left to bemoan a controversial refereeing decision in the opening minutes, when Alexandre Lacazette’s header was ruled out due to Granit Xhaka standing in an offside position.

“I am really disappointed,” said Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta. “We had it in our hands in the first half and I don’t know how the hell the goal was disallowed.

"They caught us with space at the back and in that moment we lost the game. It is difficult to create spaces with 10 men behind the ball, but we should have finished the game better. When it comes to those moments you can’t give away chances at the back.

“The effort that the boys put in, and the pressure the Leicester team put you under, it’s not an easy thing to do but we have to improve."

Arsenal’s lack of creativity against deep-lying defences remains a problem under Arteta, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang now on a run of five league matches without a goal for the first time since November 2014, when he was playing for Borussia Dortmund.

Arsenal’s build-up play was hurt by the loss of David Luiz to a muscular injury shortly after half-time. The club expects to know the severity of the injury within the next 48 hours.