West Ham v Leicester player ratings: Jesse Lingard a scintillating 9; Jonny Evans 5, Jamie Vardy 6

Hammers back in the top four and just a point behind Leicester after thrilling win

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Jesse Lingard's hot streak continued as West Ham climbed back into fourth spot in the Premier League with a 3-2 victory over third-placed Leicester City.

Lingard, who has been in scintillating form since arriving on loan from Manchester United in midseason, took his tally for the Hammers to eight goals with two strikes before half time.

Jarrod Bowen made it 3-0 shortly after the interval and Issa Diop's effort was ruled out for offside, with the home side rampant at the London Stadium.

Leicester, weakened by the absence of Ayoze Perez, James Maddison and Hamza Choudhury who were omitted for a breach of Covid-19 protocols, finally began to show the intensity required and got a lifeline when Kelechi Iheanacho fired home with 20 minutes left.

West Ham, who squandered a 3-0 lead to draw with Arsenal last month and almost did the same against Wolves in midweek, looked nervy and Iheanacho ramped up the tension with a second goal in stoppage time.

The Hammers survived six added minutes to maintain their quest for an unlikely top-four spot. They moved back above Liverpool and Chelsea with 55 points from 31 games, one point behind Leicester, who suffered a second successive defeat.

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