Sport
Have Leicester City missed their chance to crack the top four?
The last two seasons have followed a pretty consistent pattern for Leicester City. Indeed, Brendan Rodgers’ side started both the 2019/20 and 2020/21 seasons well, looked nailed on to finish in the top four only to fall away in the final phase and miss out on Champions League qualification. History has developed a habit of repeating itself at the King Power Stadium of late.
With this in mind, the aim for this season was clear – to maintain a more consistent over the course of the entire campaign and take the final step that will put Leicester City back among European football’s elite. Rather than taking a step forwards, though, the Foxes appear to have regressed.
Six fixtures into the new season and Leicester City are slumped in 13th place, already six points off the Premier League’s top four. Rodgers’ team have won just two of those six fixtures with the 2-2 draw against Burnley on Saturday reflective of many of the problems currently being suffered by the Foxes.
Leicester had to come from behind twice against the Clarets, a team they surely expected to sweep aside with relative ease. Most notably, Rodgers’ team were a soft touch at the back as they allowed themselves to be bullied by Chris Wood and Matej Vydra. Burnley weren’t the first team to expose the Leicester City defence either this season.
With Jonny Evans currently sidelined through injury, Leicester are lacking a leader and organiser. While the former Manchester United centre back might be renowned for his technical ability and capacity for playing the ball out from the back, something that makes him the perfect fit for Rodgers’ system, it is his presence as an orator that Leicester are currently missing most.
Rodgers confessed after the draw at home to Burnley that his team must improve at the back if they are to achieve their goals this season. Much was expected of Jannik Vestergaard following his summer switch from Southampton, but the Danish international has yet to be integrated properly. Caglar Soyuncu has also made a number of individual errors.
“We’re not at our level,” Rodgers said after dropping points on Saturday. “There’s no magic formula. You’ve got to keep working hard. That will bring the confidence back, and when the players are starting to gel together and the team synchronise a bit more, I’m pretty sure the results will become more consistent. At the minute, we’re not showing that. But we’ll continue to work and I’m pretty sure that will come with time.”
The inconvenient truth for Leicester City is that they appear to have been left behind by rivals with bigger budgets and more resources. Rodgers might be one of the best coaches in the country, but there’s only so far he can take a squad that is notably weaker than many others at the top end of the Premier League.
While Leicester are waiting for 33-year-old Evans to return to help turn around their season, Manchester United, to give one example, have improved through the addition of World Cup and multiple Champions League winner Raphael Varane. Liverpool also signed Ibrahima Konate for £36m to be a depth option.
Under Rodgers, Leicester City have done an exceptional job of exposing the complacency of their richer rivals through gross overachievement. Now, though, there isn’t so much complacency. Leicester have performed below their usual level so far this season, but they also have a bigger gulf to bridge. Their task of breaking into the elite is becoming tougher and tougher every season. It’s certainly tougher with their defence currently in such bad shape.
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