Vardy helps Van Nistelrooy to 1st win with Leicester

It was a fine first win for Ruud van Nistelrooy, and perhaps one final defeat for Julen Lopetegui.

Leicester marked Van Nistelrooy's first match in charge of the team by surging to a 3-1 win over Lopetegui's West Ham in the Premier League on Tuesday.

Van Nistelrooy, the former Manchester United striker, is back in English soccer this time as a manager, with Leicester taking something of a gamble on the Dutchman after his brief and impressive spell as interim coach at United this season following Erik ten Hag's departure.

He faces the tough task of keeping Leicester, one of the top candidates for relegation, in the top division. For that to happen, he's likely to need goals from Jamie Vardy — and the 37-year-old former England international delivered immediately.

Nine years after breaking Van Nistelrooy's record for scoring in consecutive games, Vardy scored the first goal of the Dutchman's tenure at Leicester by beating the offside trap and slotting home a finish with less than two minutes gone.

Morocco midfielder Bilal El Khannouss supplied the pass for Vardy's goal and scored himself with a low shot in the 61st minute to make it 2-0. Patson Daka added a third for Leicester in the 90th minute, before a stoppage-time consolation by West Ham substitute Niclas Fullkrug.

This dismal loss for West Ham came three days after its 5-2 thrashing at home by Arsenal, which piled more pressure on Lopetegui early in the former Spain and Real Madrid coach's first season with the London club.

West Ham has lost seven of its 14 games so far and is in 14th place in the 20-team league, one spot above Leicester.