Premier League: Leicester City, Arsenal play out dull draw; still without a win in new season

Leicester: Premier League champions Leicester City and last season's runners-up Arsenal remain without a win this season after a slow-burning 0-0 draw at the King Power Stadium on Saturday.

Beaten 2-1 at promoted Hull City last weekend, Leicester avoided the ignominy of becoming the first English champions to lose their first two games since Aston Villa in 1981.

But Claudio Ranieri's side were frustrated by two unsuccessful penalty shouts -- one in each half -- and also lost full debutant Nampalys Mendy to an apparent ankle injury.

Arsenal looked far more robust than the team beaten 4-3 by Liverpool a week ago and were able to welcome back Laurent Koscielny, Mesut Ozil and Olivier Giroud from their post-Euro 2016 breaks.

But with the season only two games old, both Arsene Wenger's men and Leicester are already five points off the pace set by Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea and Hull.

Ranieri had given starts to Demarai Gray and new signings Luis Hernandez and Ahmed Musa at Hull, but he reverted to last season's formula for the visit of Arsenal, three months on from his side's title coronation.

Robert Huth returned from suspension in place of Hernandez, along with Marc Albrighton and Shinji Okazaki, and Mendy stepped into the midfield hole created by N'Golo Kante's move to Chelsea.

With Arsenal dominating possession on a blustery East Midlands afternoon, it also allowed Leicester to adopt the counter-attacking formula that saw them storm the table in the first half of last season.

Arsenal were reduced to potshots, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, in for the injured Alex Iwobi, curling wide and Santi Cazorla, who replaced the hamstrung Aaron Ramsey, shooting straight at Kasper Schmeichel.

The first moment of contention in the Arsenal box occurred late in the half, after Petr Cech had saved at the feet of Jamie Vardy.

Musa penalty appeal

Danny Drinkwater, following up, tumbled over Koscielny's outstretched leg, but referee Mark Clattenburg played on and despite the home fans' boos, television replays vindicated his call.

Leicester suffered a setback early in the second half when Mendy had to go off after seeming to injure his right ankle, with Andy King taking his place.

But the hosts began to show greater enterprise in attack, Riyad Mahrez drawing an untidy foul from Francis Coquelin and then whipping a shot narrowly over the bar from the free-kick that followed.

With the game becoming scrappy, Ranieri introduced Leonardo Ulloa to the mix and with 20 minutes to play Vardy spurned a gilt-edged chance to break the deadlock.

Albrighton caught Granit Xhaka dawdling and sent the ball skidding into Vardy's path, but with Koscielny sliding in to close him down, the England man skewed his shot wide.

Wenger sent on Jack Wilshere, Ozil and Giroud from the bench and the visitors began to make inroads.

Theo Walcott threatened twice, forcing a save from Schmeichel and a fine, stretching block from Wes Morgan, while Alexis Sanchez teed up Ozil for an effort that drew Schmeichel racing from his line to block.

But Leicester saw a strong penalty appeal turned away late on when Hector Bellerin appeared to trip substitute Musa in a tangle of legs just inside the box, only for Clattenburg to shake his head once more.

There was time for one last scare in the Arsenal box as Mahrez left Koscielny on the deck before taking aim, but Cech parried to extend his side's unbeaten run against Leicester to 22 games.

Arsenal: Who’s Right About Jamie Vardy; Paul Merson Or Ian Wright?

Paul Merson and Ian Wright have had their say on the ongoing debate among Arsenal circles: Does Jamie Vardy fit Arsene Wenger’s style of play? The two disagree, which leads me to the question: Which of the Arsenal legends is right about the Leicester forward?

It is an unusual situation to be in as an Arsenal fan. Being able to speculate about the possibility of a major signing joining the club, dream about how they may fit into the system, the successes and failures of a possible transfer.

This is what Arsenal fans, pundits and ex-players are all doing with the potential signing of Jamie Vardy, and there are some differing opinions on the Leicester City striker.

In particular, ex-Arsenal players Paul Merson and Ian Wright have both had their say on how Vardy will fit into Arsenal’s side, and their positions on the matter are polar opposite. Speaking to Sky Sports, Paul Merson criticized the potential move, stating that he didn’t see how Vardy’s game complimented the philosophy of Wenger:

“It doesn’t fit with me. Arsenal don’t get the ball forward quickly enough. I don’t get the transfer, I really don’t get it. No disrespect to Vardy but his strengths are getting the ball over the top. Teams come onto Leicester and they hit them on the counter. The vast majority of Vardy’s goals came from one-on-one with goalkeepers. Teams kick-off against Arsenal and immediately put 10 behind the ball and they’ve got to try and break them down.”

Merson certainly makes a valid point. Vardy plays to a very specific style, one that Arsenal do not employ. The counter attacking style that Leicester employed early in the season and saw Vardy flourish. However, as the year progressed, opposing teams began to sit deeper and Vardy’s goal scoring exploits did not match his form earlier in the year.

Ian Wright, on the other hand, is adamant that Vardy would succeed at the Emirates. While the aforementioned style clashes are cause for concern, Wright states:

“But if you’re a clever player – and Vardy is – then you have the ability to change your game. The idea you only have one way of playing is as insulting as it’s wrong. And so what if signing Vardy means teams suddenly start dropping deep to stop him getting in behind? If that happens, all it does is leave more space for the likes of Mesut Ozil, Alexis Sanchez, Aaron Ramsey, Santi Cazorla and all those create sorts. I’m delighted to see Arsene going for an English striker who is a proven Premier League goalscorer. And, equally important, someone who is a winner.”

So, we here have two very differing opinions about whether Vardy fits into this Arsenal side. So who’s right?

Well, if you’ve followed any previous posts of mine, you will notice a trend; I am a huge fan of this signing. While there are valid concerns about a clash of styles, there is one thing that Vardy can do irrespective of how the team sets up, and that is score goals.

Vardy is a world class, proven Premier League goalscorer. He does not only possess great pace, is an excellent runner of the channels and a nuisance to any center half, but he is absolutely lethal in front of goal. Vardy can score a wide range of goals, he is an outstanding finisher, unlike current starting forward for Arsenal, Olivier Giroud.

This is why this would be such a good signing. Style concerns are fair, but they ultimately do not stack up to Vardy’s ability to ripple the net. He is the very best in the business, and he could well fire Arsenal to the Premier League title… if he joins.

Arsenal International Break Roundup: Players Enjoy A Successful Break

Arsenal players must be brimming with confidence and should be looking ahead to the Premier League season. They just pushed themselves into contention for the Premier League title with a win over Manchester United. A dominant performance led up front by the excellent Alexis Sanchez.

Arsenal have a range of international players of incredible ability and that means a lot of them travelled all around the world to play in the international games during this break. We roundup the action and performances of some of these stars during this two-week break.

Chile

We had to start with Alexis Sanchez, who continued his great Copa America and league form by scoring thrice and assisting a goal as well when he played World Cup qualifying matches against Brazil and Peru. Fans will hope that he continues his exploits when he returns to Premier League action against Watford.

Germany

Mesut Ozil was also in fine fettle as he played a significant role in Germany’s second match against Georgia. The attacking midfielder won a penalty and also assisted for another goal for his national team.

England

Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain scored goals against Estonia and Lithuania respectively in a pretty easy outing for the English team while Kieran Gibbs also got a chance to start against the minnows of Lithuania. The English contingent will hope for more easy games for England in the upcoming Euros.

Wales

The story of the Euro qualification rounds so far. Wales finally made it to a major tournament and had Aaron Ramsey and co. to thank. The Arsenal midfielder also got in the act by scoring in a 2-0 win over Andorra.

France

The much-maligned striker that is Olivier Giroud showed his goal scoring prowess by scoring twice as France defeated Denmark in a friendly game and reminded people that he still has his goal scoring boots on.

Spain

Santi Cazorla was another Arsenal star who got his shooting boots on and was on fire for the Spanish team. The midfielder started the game against Luxembourg and scored twice against them. Santi will be hopeful of a start against Watford when he returns to action in the Premier League after the international break is done with.

Costa Rica

Does anyone remember that Joel Campbell is still an Arsenal player? Well, even he got on the score sheet as he helped Costa Rica with a victory over the United States of America.