A visit to Villa Park meant things didn’t get any easier for Ruud van Nistelrooy’s Leicester after a dreadful recent run, and there was indeed early promise from the Europe-chasing hosts.
Some fluid link-up involving Bailey released Matty Cash to whip in a dangerous ball from the right, with Ollie Watkins unable to squeeze his shot on target under pressure from Conor Coady.
Momentum then shifted slightly in favour of the away side, and Villa weren’t helped by an injury to captain John McGinn with less than 20 minutes played.
Villa may have kept just two clean sheets in their last 24 PL matches, while Leicester have conceded 12 goals in their last four games, but neither side was troubled at the back throughout a truly drab opening 45 minutes.
There was a late flourish for the hosts in stoppage time, with Cash testing Jakub Stolarczyk at his near post, but fans in attendance in the Second City had to wait until the restart for a drastic increase in tempo.
Despite some promise from the visitors, it was Villa who shot into the lead just before the hour mark, when Leicester could only clear a corner as far as Ross Barkley, who brought it down on the edge of the area and sent a sweetly-struck effort nestling into the near bottom corner.
Still, Leicester weren’t prepared to tarnish their record of just one defeat from their opening game of the year since 2008, hitting back when Stephy Mavididi slotted in from close range after Emiliano Martínez denied Jamie Vardy.
The hosts were suddenly reawoken by the setback, and they seized complete control ahead of gaining the advantage for the second time.
Within seconds of coming on, the all-action Ian Maatsen nicked it off Jordan Ayew and played it into the six-yard box, where Bailey arrived to slide it through Stolarczyk’s legs.
If anything, Villa looked the more likely to score in the final stages, and Bailey struck the bar before Watkins hoofed over from just yards out.
Ultimately, Leicester could do nothing to avoid defeat while conceding at least two goals for the fifth game in a row – the first time that has happened since 2003.