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JORDAN AYEW EARNS LEICESTER A LATE POINT AS IPSWICH SQUANDER ANOTHER LEAD

Jordan Ayew’s stoppage-time equaliser denied Ipswich a first Premier League win of the season as Leicester snatched a 1-1 draw.

Town were on course for their first three points in the top flight since April 2002 when a superb volley from Leif Davis put them ahead.

But the Tractor Boys had Kalvin Phillips sent off with 15 minutes remaining, and the 10 men were unable to hold on.

Instead, Ayew’s last-gasp strike meant Kieran McKenna’s immensely watchable side have now squandered a lead five times in 10 matches this season.

Leicester, with manager Steve Cooper serving a touchline ban, should have gone ahead in the third minute when Jamie Vardy got in behind the Town back four.

But the 37-year-old opted to square the ball rather than shoot and Stephy Mavididi made a mess of his finish.

Moments later Leicester almost gifted the hosts a goal when Jannik Vestergaard miscontrolled a pass from goalkeeper Mads Hermansen.

Omari Hutchinson nicked the ball away from the defender and stood up an inviting cross for Sam Szmodics, who headed wastefully over.

Leicester’s Brighton loanee Facundo Buonanotte then embarked on a mazy run into the penalty area, beating four players before his deflected shot was pawed away by Arijanet Muric.

Ipswich passed up another good opportunity after half an hour when Dara O’Shea met a Davis corner unmarked at the back post, but he planted his header into the ground and wide.

But Town were playing some eye-catching stuff, and one slick move saw Liam Delap’s extravagant pass taken by Conor Chaplin and curled inches wide of the far post.

Hermansen had to come out bravely to deny the onrushing Delap and then hold Ben Johnson’s drive with Ipswich, like so many times this season, unable to convert some wonderful chances into goals.

That changed nine minutes into the second half, however, as Davis scored with a beautiful far-post volley. The left-back met a sweeping cross-field pass from Sam Morsy with a measured, cushioned effort back past Hermansen and inside the opposite post.

However, the mood inside Portman Road changed when a chaotic couple of minutes saw Conor Chaplin bundled over by Abdul Fatawu in the area, with referee Tim Robinson waving away Ipswich’s penalty appeals.

Robinson then further angered the locals when he showed Phillips a second yellow card for a foul on Abdul Fatawu.

Leicester sensed their chance but Buonanotte blazed over from 15 yards and Ayew’s goalbound shot was cleared by Cameron Burgess.

However, in the fourth minute of stoppage time, Morsy was robbed by Boubakary Soumare as he attempted to run the ball into the Ipswich half.

Soumare fed fellow substitute Ayew, who played a neat one-two with Vardy before slipping the ball under Muric to leave Cooper celebrating from the press seats and Ipswich utterly crestfallen.

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JORDAN AYEW EDGE THOMAS PARTEY TO WIN GHANA FOOTBALL AWARD.

Crystal Palace forward Jordan Ayew has been adjudged 2019 Footballer of the Year by the Sports Writers Association of Ghana (Swag).

The striker beat off competition from new Arsenal signing Thomas Partey and China-based midfielder Mubarak Wakaso in the event held in Accra on Saturday evening.

Currently in Ghana’s camp for October’s international friendly matches against Mali and Qatar, the centre-forward was presented with his award by Ghana Football Association (GFA) president Kurt Edwin Simeon Okraku in Turkey.

The award honours the most outstanding Ghanaian male footballer plying his trade abroad.

“Thank you to Swag Ghana! I’m honoured and grateful to receive the Swag Foreign Footballer of the Year Award,” Ayew has posted on social media.

The former Olympique Marseille man succeeds last year’s award winner Partey, who was also in contention for this year’s prize.

The Swag gong is Ayew’s latest honour after he scooped three at Crystal Palace’s End of Season Awards in July following a fine club campaign.

In his second year with the Eagles, the 29-year-old registered nine goals in 37 Premier League appearances to help the club finish the season in 14th position.

His goal haul won his the club’s top scorer of two season award, in addition to being adjudged the club’s Player of the Season and the Players’ Player of the Season.

This season, however, he is yet to find the back of the net after four rounds of matches.

Ayew also netted twice for Ghana at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Egypt.

On Friday, the striker was in action as Ghana succumbed to a disappointing 3-0 defeat to Mali in a friendly tie.

He will hope to register his first strike of the 2020-21 term in any competition when the Black Stars face 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar in a second friendly game on Monday.