LEICESTER, England (AP) - Leicester avoided a third successive English Premier League defeat after a late equalizer from Wilfred Ndidi rescued a 1-1 draw with West Ham at King Power Stadium on Saturday.
Manager Claude Puel dropped talismanic striker Jamie Vardy to the Leicester bench and the controversial decision looked to have backfired when his side went behind in the 30th minute. Fabian Balbuena’s first goal for West Ham came from a rebound after his diving header bounced off the post.
The visitors, though, were reduced to 10 men eight minutes later after Mark Noble was red-carded for a dangerous tackle on Ndidi.
Vardy came on as a halftime substitute for Rachid Ghezzal and the former England forward wasted two good chances as Leicester laid siege to the West Ham goal.
The home team finally leveled with one minute remaining when Ndidi’s long-range shot went in after taking a big deflection off Balbuena.
The match ended on a sour note with Leicester’s Daniel Amartey being carried off on a stretcher, needing oxygen after appearing to get his studs caught in the turf.
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