Pearson left unhappy as lethal Phillips saves a point
Blackpool 3 Leicester City 3
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Your support makes all the difference.Nigel Pearson, the Leicester City manager, was left fuming after a last minute Kevin Phillips goal gave Blackpool a share of the spoils in a six-goal thriller. The Seasiders kept up their impressive record of scoring late on to move into the Championship play-offs after Jermanie Beckford looked to have secured the points for the visitors.
Pearson was scathing in his assessment, blaming his defence for a lack of concentration. "It is another two points thrown away. We are really struggling if you are having to score four goals to win a game. We're leaking goals far too easily," he said.
Beckford, charged with leading the Leicester line, was bright throughout. Despite looking menacing, with Neil Danns taking a firm grip of midfield, City undid their good work in the first half after giving away a cheap corner. Danny Drinkwater was caught underneath Tom Ince's deep delivery, allowing Phillips to plant a header beyond Lee Peltier on the line.
The midfielder did not wait long to make up for that lapse in concentration. Six minutes later he drove from deep before playing a clever ball through to Beckford who coolly slotted past Matt Gilks to equalise. Leicester took the lead in the 54th minute, David Nugent finding himself alone inside the six-yard box to place a header past Gilks.
They were soon pegged back though. Poor positional play by Sean St Ledger allowed substitute Roman Bednar to run clear and strike into the corner of the net. Ian Holloway reverted to 3-3-4 in the search for three points, leaving his team short at the back. No sooner had Blackpool equalised, than Beckford was again unmarked to restore Leicester's lead. But as is so often the case in games involving Blackpool, there was a late goal. This time it was Phillips who won a point, turning in Ince's cross.
"We got the least we deserved and that is a vital point for us," said Holloway.
Blackpool (4-3-3): Gilks; Eardley, Baptiste, Evatt, Crainey; Southern, Ferguson, Taylor-Fletcher; M Phillips, K Phillips, Ince
Subs: Sylvestre, Cathcart, Dicko, Bednar, Lua Lua.
Leicester City (4-4-2): Schmeichel; Peltier, St Ledger, Morgan, Konchesky; Drinkwater, Wellens, Danns, Dyer; Nugent, Beckford.
Subs: Bamba, Howard, Marshall, Schlupp, Kennedy
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