Ryan Fraser double helps Bournemouth blast Leicester aside as Wes Morgan’s red card sums up Foxes’ day

Bournemouth 4-2 Leicester: Cherries were 4-0 up thanks to Fraser, Josh King and Adam Smith before Leicester finally found a way to respond when it was already too late

Ryan Fraser celebrates after scoring his second goal for Bournemouth against Leicester (Getty)

This match proved that you can have a team of clever ball-players and a trio of England internationals but if you cannot defend against pacy and direct forwards you will lose. And no matter what the score suggests, Leicester City lost heavily. They were three down at half-time and it could have been more, and England’s Harry Maguire was lucky to have escaped a second yellow card.

It got worse in the second half with captain Wes Morgan sent-off but by then they had already paid the price for failing to get to grips with Joshua King, Callum Wilson or Ryan Fraser, who was a doubt before the game after picking up a hamstring injury on Scotland duty but showed few signs of it as he terrorised the Leicester back four, scoring two goals and setting up another.

They could say they were unlucky as Bournemouth needed only four shots, three on target, to establish that half-time lead. But they have only themselves to blame for wasting their own chances to score until it was too late, their two goals coming in the final three minutes of normal time.

Ryan Fraser is swamped by his Bourneouth teammates after scoring against Leicester (Getty)

The early stages gave no clue as to what was to come as Leicester dominated. They were frequently gifted possession and looked confident when they had it. Jamie Vardy, returning from a three-match suspension, sidefooted wide when unmarked after four minutes. Then he went through on Rachid Ghezzal’s through pass in the seventh minute but goalkeeper Asmir Begovic spread himself at the striker’s feet and blocked. Bournemouth’s only meaningful foray upfield ended when Fraser fell in the penalty area under Ricardo Pereira’s challenge after 15 minutes but referee Craig Pawson was uninterested.

So of course after 19 minutes that Leicester had largely controlled, Bournemouth scored with their first effort at goal. A fortunate ricochet fell to King and his reverse pass went through the legs of Pereira to Fraser. He cut inside Morgan and bent a shot around Kasper Schmeichel and into the bottom far corner of the net.

Fraser celebrates his second goal with his Bournemouth teammates (PA)

It could have been 2-0 four minutes later when Wilson charged onto David Brooks’ forward pass but he shot wildly and wide instead of passing to King, who was better placed.

And the home crowd were baying after 28 minutes when Maguire, booked earlier for a trip on Wilson, bodychecked King on the half-way line but escaped a second yellow card.

Josh King scores Bournemouth's third from the penalty spot (PA)

On 33 minutes Leicester went close again. James Maddison sent Vardy through only for Begovic to parry. Maddison collected the rebound and shot for goal but Begovic deflected the ball onto the crossbar this time. And instead of 1-1, it was 2-0 three minutes later as Wilson’s pass went through a square defence to Fraser and with Maguire unwilling to risk a tackle, the Scot rolled the ball past Schmeichel.

Five minutes before the interval it was 3-0 after Pereira controlled a bouncing ball with his arm under very little pressure from King, who converted the penalty with no fuss.

Wes Morgan was sent-off to compound Leicester's misery (PA)

In the second half, Fraser almost completed his hat-trick with a curling cross that Schmeichel fingertipped over the crossbar at full stretch and Morgan headed high and Maguire forced Begovic into a diving save as Leicester looked for a reply.

But Morgan was soon heading back to the dressing rooms after being shown a second yellow card for a foul on Adam Smith after losing control of the ball as he tried in vain to spark a recovery with an ambitious run out of defence.

James Maddison tucks home a late penalty for Leicester (Reuters)

Leicester kept trying and Maguire’s header was nodded off the goalline by Ryan Gosling before Schmeichel just tipped Wilson’s shot on the break round the post. But after 81 minutes Fraser crossed from the left for Adam Smith to volley in Bournemouth’s fourth from 15 yards.

Three minutes from time Pereira tumbled unconvincingly over Diego Rico’s challenge and a charitable referee Pawson awarded a penalty, scored by Maddison, and within seconds Marc Albrighton glanced in a header from a cross by fellow substitute Kelechi Iheanacho.

Teams

Bournemouth (4-4-2): Begovic; Smith, S Cook, Ake, Rico; Brooks (Francis 67), Lerma (L Cook 78), Gosling, Fraser; Wilson, King (Mousset 85).

Substitutes not used: Boruc, Surman, Ibe, Defoe.

Leicester City (4-2-3-1): Schmeichel; Pereira, Morgan, Maguire, Chilwell; Ndidi, Mendy; Ghezzal (Albrighton 60), Maddison, Gray (Iheanacho 60); Vardy (Evans 84).

Substitutes not used: Ward, Amartey, Iborra, Fuchs.

Referee: C Pawson.