Sport
Leicester City start proving that they’re here to stay
Nothing quite sums up the football hype train like the clamour to back Leicester City last season. Brendan Rodgers, having shaken off a bitter end to life at Liverpool and redeemed his reputation as one of Europe’s top coaches, had made some very interesting signings and the Foxes were expected to crash the ‘big six’ party.
The buzz was back at the King Power Stadium, well and truly. Having built themselves a reputation as the ultimate underdogs, off which they lifted the Premier League title in 2016, they were finally a team people thought could challenge on the front foot. Rodgers and his side did not disappoint, finishing fifth and qualifying for the Europa League. However, having been third by quite a distance for most of the season, a real drop off in 2020, accentuated by a particularly bad spell after project restart in June, saw their bubble -burst spectacularly. Missing out on Champions League football in that fashion was devastating for the supporters, even if a little perspective eased the overall perception of their plight.
Injuries, particularly to James Maddison and Ricardo Pereira, were seen as the main reason behind the sudden loss of form. Jamie Vardy, who had been scoring goals for fun in the early weeks and months and still ended up as the league’s Golden Boot winner, suddenly became very inconsistent in front of goal.
The short turnaround before the new campaign kicked off, and the news that spending would be minimal at the club due to the effects of the worldwide pandemic, meant Leicester City were not expected to repeat their feat. Instead of placing them in a European spot, a number of pundits were expecting them to challenge in the top half. They certainly didn’t feel like flavour of the month anymore.
Yet, minus a defeat in the Carabao Cup to Arsenal, it has been a perfect start. Leicester are three wins from three in the league and looking as threatening going forward as they did a year ago. Sunday’s 5-2 win at Manchester City was a reminder to everyone exactly what they were about. That performance, and this current run of form, showed why they struggled last season. Right now at least, those problems are behind them.
Pereira is without doubt one of the Premier League’s best full-backs and he has been sorely missed. His absence continues but, in his place, is Leicester’s only permanent addition this season. Timothy Castagne joined from Atalanta and the Belgian has offered another presence in attack down the right flank, while Maddison’s return has been timely.
He scored a superb goal at the Etihad Stadium and punished the space left by the hosts at every turn. Vardy became the first player ever to score two hat-tricks against a Pep Guardiola side. Leicester City are looking as strong as they did last season precisely because they are once again able to.
It was a bitter blow to Manchester City’s hopes of keeping an early pace with Liverpool but Guardiola couldn’t deal with Rodgers’ change of approach. The Northern Irishman maintained all the attacking intent, committing numbers going forward when he could without losing that steel and togetherness at the back and gifting away possession.
The hosts had no answer and, rather than publicly admitting that they need to work on beating teams who sit deep more regularly as they did with minimal fuss a couple of years ago, they are complaining. Guardiola and Spanish midfielder Rodri accused Leicester of not wanting to play football, which was rather concerning because it suggested that they believed they hadn’t come up short.
No team should worry about playing defensively, especially against a team like that who have proven time and time again that they can ruthlessly rip through the pitch and punish anybody. Guardiola should respect that, anticipate it and work out a way around it. There is no doubting his ability to do that but his comments came off as little more than sour grapes at the weekend.
Leicester overachieved at the start of last season, which made their form throughout the winter, spring and early summer all the more headline-grabbing. But they are likely to be a force again this term, especially if they can keep Vardy and Maddison fit throughout.
Perception counts for a lot in football; it dictates the sort of pressure a club will play under. Leicester had the burden of expectation, and dealt with that well overall. But now they are looking freer and fresher without the spotlight; it really is paying off well.
With every season, it gets more competitive at the top end of the Premier League. The usual suspects spend big, something Leicester City haven’t done, and that, in truth, is why pundits have cooled on their predictions. Nothing quite generates excitement like a busy transfer window.
But to say Rodgers’ men won’t be in the conversation does them a disservice. This season will be about another push for Europe and, if anyone doubts them, they need only look at Sunday’s performance.
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