Leicester City moved three points clear of the Premier League relegation zone with a comfortable 2-0 win at home to Southampton.

Two first-half goals from Riyad Mahrez were enough to see the Foxes boost their survival prospects after Hull City's defeat to Burnley.

The Saints had to wait over 70 minutes to fashion a first shot on target as the visitors struggled for their best form this afternoon.

Here, Sports Mole analyses how the game was won at the King Power Stadium.

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Match statistics

LEICESTER CITY
Shots: 10
On target: 3
Possession: 31%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 12

SOUTHAMPTON
Shots: 10
On target: 3
Possession: 69%
Corners: 8
Fouls: 10

Was the result fair?

Undoubtedly. Leicester wrapped the game up within 20 minutes and simply allowed Southampton to toil in the final third for the remainder of the contest. The visitors did nowhere near enough to deserve anything from their 150-mile trip to the East Midlands.

Leicester City's performance

An already big game increased in importance prior to kickoff when Sunderland won 2-0 at Everton to pull Leicester into 17th, outside the bottom three on goals scored. Nigel Pearson's side went into the contest with the added pressure of knowing that they would finish the weekend in 18th if Hull - who faced Burnley at home - bettered their result.

However, the Foxes, knowing full well what the repercussions of dropped points were, looked unfazed by the extra pressure and stunned their South-Coast counterparts with two goals inside the 20-minute mark. First, Mahrez drilled past Paulo Gazzaniga into the bottom corner, before stabbing the ball home shortly after - a couple of soft goals from a Southampton perspective, but Pearson will not have cared.

Saint Jude, patron saint of lost causes, faces a fight to hang onto his title by virtue of Jamie Vardy's industrious performances in recent weeks, and the forward was just as energetic here again. In fact, it was Vardy's relentless running that forced Gazzaniga into the rushed clearance that led to the second goal. However, he should have killed the game off just after the half-hour mark when he fluffed a one-on-one with the South American stopper.

The chant of "we are staying up" provided the soundtrack to a less eventful second half for the hosts, but they did not need to add another goal. Esteban Cambiasso and Mahrez, for his hat-trick, went close to a third but it was obvious that the misses would not prove costly, with their defence comfortably repelling everything that came their way.

Hull's defeat at Burnley means that Leicester, who sit three points clear of danger, travel to Sunderland next week knowing that victory would effectively see them stay in the division, with the Tigers facing Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United in their final two games. Suddenly, there is light at the end of the tunnel that Leicester have been digging for five weeks.

Southampton's performance

Salvation was the theme of the day for Southampton - without a win in three - as Ronald Koeman's charges travelled to Leicester knowing that victory was imperative in order to preserve their hopes of qualifying for the Europa League, and drawing something tangible from a season that once promised Champions League football. Despite having plenty to play for, though, their incentive was not reflected in an uncharacteristically sloppy first-half showing that saw them trail 2-0 at the break.

The soft nature of Mahrez's first goal will have irked Koeman, with Harrison Reed and Steven Davis both putting in half-hearted attempts to tackle Mahrez moments before the strike. Twenty-year-old Reed, making just his ninth Premier League appearance, may be given the benefit of the doubt, but veteran midfielder Davis is not afforded the same allowance.

The second, scored on 19 minutes, will have hurt Koeman even more. The Saints boss took a leap of faith in giving goalkeeper Gazzaniga his first Premier League appearance of the season at the expense of veteran Kelvin Davis - and the gamble backfired. The goal directly stemmed from the Argentine's botched clearance, which Leonardo Ulloa headed into the path of Vardy, who fed Mahrez to stab past Gazzaniga from close range.

With a European spot at stake, Koeman deserves the brunt of the criticism for rolling the dice on his side's season. The visitors did little to put things right at the other end, with Graziano Pelle particularly anonymous as Kasper Schmeichel enjoyed perhaps his quietest first half all season.

It was not until the 70-minute mark that Schmeichel was forced into a meaningful save, tipping Sadio Mane's lofted effort over the bar, which illustrates the visitors' final-third labours this afternoon. With sixth-placed Spurs losing at Stoke City, this defeat will hurt even more for Southampton. They continue to play catch-up when they could be leading the race for Europa League qualification.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Riyad Mahrez: Mahrez was far and away the standout candidate for man of the match this afternoon; not only for his goals, but the Algerian was constantly involved throughout.

Shortly after picking up his second, the playmaker threaded a fine ball through for Vardy, who fluffed the one-on-one, and later missed a good chance for his hat-trick in the second half.

This great escape is very much a team effort, but Mahrez did much of the spadework this afternoon as City further dug their way to safety.

Biggest gaffe

It is goalkeeper Gazzaniga, making his first league start of the season. The Argentine's hashed clearance proved the catalyst for Leicester to establish daylight in the scoreline, but perhaps Koeman also deserves a slice of the blame for playing him at the expense of the tried-and-tested Davis.

Referee performance

It was a quiet afternoon for referee Roger East, who booked just one player - Marcin Wasilewski - for a cynical foul on Mane. There were a couple of penalty appeals to contend with, but East looked to have made the correct call on both occasions.

What next?

Leicester City: Leicester travel to Sunderland on Saturday afternoon in what is arguably their biggest game of the season.

Southampton: The Saints return to the South Coast and now prepare for a visit of Aston Villa in the early kickoff next Saturday.