B B C Sports: Jamie Vardy ‘a leader by example’ – Leicester boss Ruud van Nistelrooy.

Leicester City’s veteran striker Jamie Vardy received high plaudits from manager Ruud van Nistelrooy after his goal set up a critical 2-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday. Vardy, 38, equalised from close range just after halftime, and Bilal El Khannouss scored the winner four minutes later. Van Nistelrooy called the result as “huge” as his team rose out of the Premier League’s relegation zone and into 17th position. “He is a leader by example,” Van Nistelrooy said about Vardy, who has seven goals and three assists in the league this season. “He’s still generating.

“He is held in high regard by the club’s players and personnel. He’s also delivering. Leicester trailed to Richarlison’s 33rd-minute header, but rallied after halftime.

“The performance was excellent, the shape and the way the players defended together,” said Van Nistelrooy, who won only his second league title in charge. “We fell behind, but the way the team responded to falling 1-0 down was to take the ball and start playing. They were calm at halftime, and they exited the dressing room with style. I believe that won us the game in the end. “The effort, determination, blocks and clearances, as well as the techniques we employed, were all enjoyable to watch. It earned us an impressive three points away from home.”

After scoring his equaliser, the attacker taunted Spurs fans by pointing to the Premier League logo on his sleeve and claiming that Leicester had won more Premier League titles than their hosts. Vardy, the only survivor from Leicester’s 2015-16 Premier League winning team, was a constant threat to Tottenham’s defence and ran himself into the ground in north London.

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