Leicester City star Marc Albrighton moved to third in the ranking of players who have registered most assists as a substitute in the English Premier League.
Having replaced Ricardo Pereira at the beginning of the second-half, Albrighton assisted Ayoze Perez for the Foxes’ second goal against Paul Heckingbottom’s men in the 5-0 rout.
After darting down the right wing, the 31-year-old showed great awareness to pick out the Spaniard, who drove at the visitors’ backline before drilling a low shot into the far corner of Aaron Ramsdale’s goal post.
It was his 13th assist as a substitute in the English elite division, putting him above Arsenal legend Nwankwo Kanu into third place.
13 - Marc Albrighton has assisted 13 Premier League goals as a substitute; only Ryan Giggs and Theo Walcott (14 each) have registered more assists from the bench. Pay-off. pic.twitter.com/ndvGC525sz
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 14, 2021
Only Manchester United great Ryan Giggs and the Everton loanee, who hav 14 assists to their names from the bench, has done more than the former Aston Villa and Leicester City man.
Ex-Cardiff City and Arsenal star Aaron Ramsey is tied in fourth place with the former Nigeria international, with 12 assists as a substitute.
Kanu teamed up with the Gunners from Serie A outfit Inter Milan for a reported £4.15 million fee in 1999 and instantly established himself in Arsene Wenger’s squad.
During his five-and-a-half years at the North London outfit, he won two Premier League titles, two FA Cup diadems, one FA Charity Shield Cup, before joining West Bromwich Albion.
Notably, the lanky striker came off the bench to make a significant impact in first few outings for the Gunners with goals against Derby County, Sheffield Wednesday, Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa as a substitute.
He also bagged a 15-minute hat-trick against Chelsea in October 1999, which helped Arsenal turn around a two-goal deficit to claim a 3-2 win. In addition, the two-time African Player of the Year winner was part of the Invincible team that won the 2003-04 Premier League title without losing a game.
Thanks to their latest win, Brendan Rodgers’ Foxes moved up to second in the Premier League after accruing 56 points from 29 fixtures. They square up against Manchester United in their next game as they hope to beat the Red Devils to a FA Cup semi-final place.