Leicester City manager Enzo Maresca insists Sunderland were more ‘aggressive and consistent’ than Leeds United, despite his side’s 1-0 defeat to Daniel Farke’s side on Friday night.

The Black Cats lost by the same scoreline in close game to the Foxes last month, but Leicester couldn’t find a 10th consecutive win when they came up against Leeds last night. Georginio Rutter’s 57th-minute goal was enough to make sure Leeds closed in on Ipswich in second place, and condemn Leicester to their second home defeat of the season.

Abdul Fatawu hit the crossbar in the first half, but Leicester managed only one effort on target during the game. And while Maresca was full of praise for Leeds, he said Sunderland had caused his side more problems.

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“I’m happy with the performance, we expected this match in terms of intensity,” said Maresca. “They are a very good team, dangerous and good technically. We cannot win all the games. Overall I am happy, defeat is part of the process. It’s a case of what we can do better, and for sure, we can do some things better. I felt we deserved something more from the game.

“Sunderland were more aggressive and more consistent,” added the Italian. “They started in minute one and finished in minute 95.

“Leeds started with intensity in the first half, and they dropped in the last minutes. We were in control for the last half hour. For me, the team that showed more intensity was Sunderland.”

Leeds manager Daniel Farke felt his side’s victory was a reward for a performance of “bravery and courage”. Farke praised an impressive d

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“We were brave and went for it with courage as a side who have been unbeaten for so long,” said the Leeds manager.

“It was a complex performance on the field, but we stayed disciplined and kept them to areas where they couldn’t hurt us. I believed in my players and that they could dominate the game.

“You could see the goal coming in the second half, it was a deserved win, we had the better chances. The only thing Georginio needed to improve was his goal tally. This was a decisive goal and a sign of quality.”