Opposition View: Leicester City
Leicester City, Premier League champions 2019-20? While nothing will top the 2015-16 Foxes fairy tale, they’re having a bloody good go at adding another title to the trophy cabinet at the King Power Stadium.
Brendan Rodgers’ side arrive at the Amex as Liverpool’s closest pursuers at the top of the table. The Foxes are the proud owners of the division’s best defensive record and the number in their goals for column is only bettered by Manchester City so far.
What’s the secret behind their current success? Can they maintain it all the way through to the end of the season and prevent the potentially unbearable scenario of Liverpool winning the league? And what are the chances of Lewis Dunk making the move to Leicester in the near future?
We spoke to Chris Forryan from Leicester Till I Die to find out.
Leicester City, second in the Premier League table. Are we about to see another unlikely title triumph for the Foxes?
Ask me again in January, but why the heck not. It’s Liverpool’s to lose but look at the lead they threw away last season. Manchester City are having a dodgy season by their own high standards, Arsenal are being, well Arsenal, and Tottenham Hotspur now have a new manager who in my opinion is past his best. Leicester against Liverpool on Boxing day will be pivotal, but each week my smile is getting bigger.
How much of a difference has Brendan Rodgers made since his appointment in February?
Look, Bob the builder would have made a positive difference over Claude Puel. Puel was handed the proverbial hot potato in changing the guard from the remains of the title winning squad. It was never going to be easy and he made a fine attempt, but his lack of any personality whatsoever or any attractiveness to his playing style failed to win over the fans and it was always a case of when rather than if.
What do you put your success so far this season down to?
Rodgers. Simple answer. We have struggled with managerial appointments since we sacked Claudio Ranieri – and yes, he had to go at the time. It’s helped that Rodgers took the controversial decision to come to Leicester with 10 games still to go, passing up the chance of winning another treble at Celtic. It gave him a chance to see the squad in competitive games and not just meaningless pre-season friendlies.
With the season you’re having, it seems inevitable that some big money bids will come in for the likes of James Maddison and Ben Chilwell. Do you think you can hold onto them?
Well, come the January transfer window we should make a killing as Caglar Soyuncu is going to about six clubs at the moment! We don’t need the money – we only sold Riyad Mahrez and Harry Maguire when we were offered money what over what they were worth, and neither move has proven to be good for the player’s career. Mahrez leaves for a bigger club in Manchester City and get splinters in the arse from warming the bench; Maguire leaves for Manchester United and impersonates a table lamp sitting in mid table. We are second in the table, so why couldn’t we keep hold of our stars?
Speaking of Maguire, you never signed a replacement for him. For those of us concerned about Lewis Dunk’s Albion future, is that a position that Rodgers will want to strengthen in next summer or have the players you’ve got made a mockery of Maguire’s departure?
We never went out and bought a new centre back because we don’t need one. Soyuncu was bought the season before for when this situation arose, as was Filip Benkovic who Rodgers had on loan for a season at Celtic. So we don’t need to buy anyone else, especially as we currently have the best defensive record in the Premier League.
What did you make of Brighton in our two encounters last season?
A 1-1 draw at yours and a 2-1 win at ours so four points out of a possible six, I’ll take that. I liked Brighton because I liked Chris Houghton and I was pleased when he got you up and kept you up because if I can get a ticket for when we come to the Amex, it’s like a home game for me living in Dorset. I also like to see – and there’s no offence intended here as I class Leicester like this – the smaller clubs do well and the traditionally bigger ones such as Newcastle United and Aston Villa struggle.
What weaknesses do Leicester have that Graham Potter might be able to exploit at the Amex on Saturday?
This is going to sound rather crass but I don’t think we have any – and that is because we are sat second in the table with the best defensive record and the second highest number of goals scored. A few games ago, I might have said keep Jamie Vardy quiet and you might get a point, but we are less reliant on him than we were at the start of the season.
From what you’ve seen so far, who do you think is going to make up the top four and who is going down?
At the start of the season I would have said Leicester for the top six but as things stand there is a gap opening up to the top four so I think it will stay pretty much as it is, Liverpool, Leicester, Chelsea & Manchester City although not in that order. To go down, I think Southampton are doomed and would love to see Villa join them. The other team, despite their good start, could be Norwich.
Finally, a prediction please?
I’ll stick with my Prediction on The Leicester Show on Love Sport Radio and go 2-0 to Leicester.
Thanks to Chris for answering our questions ahead of Leicester’s visit to the Amex. We did likewise for him – so why not check out our interview on Leicester Till I Die
