Football - Leicester 2 Watford 1 report

A howler from Heurelho Gomes gave N'Golo Kante the opener for Leicester

Jamie Vardy scored his ninth goal in as many Premier League games as Leicester beat Watford 2-1 and temporarily moved joint-top of the division.

The England international struck the winner from the penalty spot on 65 minutes after he was brought down in the box by Heurelho Gomes, having to argue with Riyad Mahrez to take the kick .

Gomes had game to forget; allowing N'Golo Kante's timid shot to slip through his fingers as the home side went ahead on 52 minutes. Watford pulled a goal back late on when Kante felled substitute Juan Carlos Peredes in the area and Troy Deeney converted the spot-kick, but the Foxes held on to seal a fourth league win in six matches.

It looked destined to be the first match since August in which Vardy would not score for Leicester, with his existence peripheral and signals of intense pain in his groin to the bench after an hour of play. Vardy had only one effort in a goalless first half, firing tamely into Gomes hands after Marc Albrighton had also gone close in an opening period arguably edged by the visitors.

Watford had more possession and Odion Ighalo, in just as formidable form as Vardy, smacked a volley against the post after 20 minutes having been found in the box by Deeney. But Leicester have grown stronger in games week after week, and they deserved to go ahead seven minutes into the second half despite it being a gift from keeper Gomes.

Kante worked space inside the area and prodded a meager shot towards the far corner that should have been saved, but instead it crept in through the Brazilian's fingers. Gomes then launched himself at Vardy in the right-hand corner of the penalty area, sending the striker tumbling, and he somehow avoided being sent-off whilst arguably his team's last man.

Vardy smashed the spot-kick high into the net to make it 2-0 and the Foxes would have kept a clean sheet had it not been for a mistake from goal-scorer Kante. The summer signing lost possession inside his own area with a poor touch and then tripped his tackler Peredes. Deeney made no mistake but Watford missed the chance for a third straight win.