Sunderland (England): Jamie Vardy’s second-half double helped Leicester City go 10 points clear at the top of the Premier League as they enjoyed a hard-fought 2-0 win away to Sunderland on Sunday.
At Anfield, Divock Origi scored a brace as Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool thrashed Stoke City 4-1. Claudio Ranieri’s side are closing in on the English title after a fifth consecutive win put the pressure back on second-placed Tottenham Hotspur ahead of their home game against Manchester United later in the day.
But regardless of what the chasing pack do, Leicester will be crowned champions for the first time in their history if they win three of their remaining five league games.
Leicester struggled to impose themselves on the relegation-threatened Black Cats, who deserved reward for their efforts, but remain third from bottom and four points from safety after a tense encounter at the Stadium of Light.
Vardy broke the deadlock in the 66th minute, sprinting onto a long, lofted through ball from Danny Drinkwater to outpace his marker Younes Kaboul before finding the bottom corner from a narrow angle past keeper Vito Mannone.
The England striker sealed the win in stoppage time, taking a pass from substitute Demarai Gray to run beyond Sunderland’s trailing defence before rounding Mannone to roll the ball into an empty net.
Vardy now has 21 Premier League goals this season after hitting the net from open play for the first time in more than two months. The benefits of a settled side were highlighted by unchanged Leicester fielding eight players who started the 4-2 opening day of the season win over Sunderland while the north-east side had just four survivors from their August defeat.
