Promoted team analysis – Leicester

Promoted team analysis – Leicester

Today we continue with our series of articles examining the three teams promoted to the Premier League from the Championship with today’s focus being on the champions Leicester City.
Last Season
First in Championship
102 points
Won: 31
Drew: nine
Lost: six
Scored: 84 (second highest in the league)
Conceded: 43 (third lowest in the league)

Previous Season in the Premier League
2003-04 Season (18th relegated)
After an 11 season break from the top flight, the Foxes are back! And in some fashion. Leicester City were the clear Championship winners last season. With a staggering 102 points, the best goal difference in the league and an excellent win ratio of 67%. Prior to last season’s promotion to the Premier League, they had dropped down to Coca-Cola League 1 (English third division) for a season but their time outside of the Premier League was mostly spent in the Championship where they finished in various positions over the years.

The Manager
Nigel Pearson is in his second spell at City. His first spell from ’08 to ’10, ended in acrimonious circumstances after he left for Hull. After only a year and a half, the ‘headmaster’ (when asked why he was called this he replied ‘because I’m a t**t!’) moved back to the Foxes in 2011. His current win ratio with the club is 51.43% with 72 wins from 140. With a good number of seasons behind him, the squad is well and truly his. He has been building a team he feels would not only get the Foxes into the Premier League but also keep them there. And the Foxes showed they have the potential to remain in the English top flight.

The Players

Let’s take a look at some of the players from last season and some of the new arrivals –

GOALKEEPER
Kasper Schmeichel (46 appearances, 0 goals, 0 assists) (£4.5m)
After signing a new long term contract, arguably Leicester’s best player over the last few seasons could be an excellent rotation option. Ben Harmer has been signed from Charlton but Harmer will most likely be backup. The Danish international started at Manchester City but struggled to break through and spent most of his time on loan at various clubs. Upon his move to Leicester in 2011-12 he immediately established himself as number 1 and hasn’t given it up since. His clean sheet record last season was good; 18 out of 46 and he could prove to be this seasons Julian Speroni!

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DEFENDERS
Ritchie de Laet (36 apps, 2 goals, 5 assists) (£4.5m)
The Belgian is the current first choice right back and enjoys getting forward. De Laet started at Royal Antwerp before moving to Stoke City in 2007. He struggled to establish himself there before moving to Manchester United and having the same problem from 2008 to 2012. After moving to Leicester in 2012 he made 41 appearances and 36 last season. He could be a very handy addition to your squad but be wary, he is a little injury prone.

Paul Konchesky (31 appearances, 1 goal, 1 assist) (£4.5m)
The much travelled 33 year old has done well at Championship level but is unlikely to be afforded regular starts in the Premiership, nevertheless his Premier League experience is likely to be beneficial and this could see him make the odd start. The fact that he was handed a reduced one year contract extension back in January would suggest that he’s not in Pearson’s plans.

Wes Morgan (45 appearances, 2 goals, 0 assists) (£4.5m)
The City centre back and captain is as close to a certainty as any of the squad. Morgan started at Kidderminster before moving to Nottingham Forest where he made 352 appearances over 10 seasons. He then moved to City where, over the last two seasons, he has been an ever-present. He had an excellent season last year and, given how the bonus points seemed to favour centre backs last season, he could be the cheap Leicester defender to opt for.

Liam Moore (30 appearances, 1 goal, 1 assist) (£4.0m)
Moore fell out of favour as last season progressed and the youngster may not be a starter. The England under-21 player has played for Leicester his whole career and is seen as a player who has a future with the club. Remember the name for future.

Jeffrey Schlupp (26 appearances, 1 goal, 1 assist) (£4.5m)
The Ghanaian international is unlikely to be heavily involved and only managed 15 starts last season. His saving grace is that can be played all over the park so if he can nail down a position he has the potential to be an out of position defender.

Marcin Wasilewski (31 appearances, 0 goals, 0 assists) (£4.0m)
The versatile Polish international is able to play across the back line and filled-in in a number of different positions last season when the need arose. With Pearson likely to bolster his squad with new signings the Pole is unlikely to be a regular starter but with over 50 international caps to his name his experience could yet prove useful.

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MIDFIELDERS
Anthony Knockaert (42 appearances, 5 goals, 7 assists) (£5.5m)
The Frenchman could be a real bargain of a winger. He’s young, energetic, on free kicks and corners and has an eye for goal, what’s not to like?! He does however pick up needless yellow cards due to his feisty displays. Knockaert started at French second division team Guingamp where he scored 13 goals and one assist in 59 appearances. He moved to Leicester in 2012 and has scored 13 goals and three assists in 84 appearances. The only downside could be the fact that Pearson has a fondness for making second-half changes and this resulted in Knockaert only playing the full 90 minutes on 16 occasions.

Danny Drinkwater (45 appearances, 7 goals, 5 assists) (£5.5m)
The ‘worker’ in the Leicester engine room, Drinkwater is a true box-to-box player who started at Manchester United. Over four seasons he didn’t make any appearances, instead he went out on loan each season. Since joining Leicester he has progressed to a first team regular and has just come off the back of a stunning season with the 24 year old scoring 7 of his 10 career goals last season. It is worth noting that the former England under 19 player also has a share of corners and indirect free-kicks.

Andy King (30 appearances, 4 goals, 2 assists) (£4.5m)
King joined the club as a 15 year old back in 2004, making his professional debut in 2007 and has since gone on to make 246 appearances for the club. He is a solid central midfielder but is unlikely to be a regular starter as he’ll be behind both Drinkwater & James in the pecking order as well as any new central midfielders whom Pearson signs.

Matty James (35 appearances, 1 goal, 5 assists) (£4.5m)
James is a solid player with an eye for a pass and is currently first choice in midfield alongside Drinkwater and has recently signed a new 4 year deal with the club, although it won’t come as a major surprise should Pearson dip into the market for a new midfielder to partner Drinkwater, therefore Drinkwater & Knockaert are more than likely better options.

Riyad Mahrez (19 appearances, 3 goals, 5 assists) (£5.0m)
Mahrez could be a very handy player if he can get regular starts. A decent winger who has a bagful of tricks and an eye for goal. Since joining Leicester in January he has scored three goals in 19 appearances and was rewarded with a place in the Algerian squad at the Brazilian World Cup where he played 70 minutes against Belgian. A little bit of an unknown quantity but certainly one to watch.

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FORWARDS
David Nugent (46 appearances, 20 goals, 12 assists) (£5.5m)
Since joining from Portsmouth in the summer of 2011 Nugent has gone on to play 130 games scoring 49 goals. For much of last season his name was the first on Pearson’s team sheet and as he is one of the few players at the club with top flight experience he is likely to be one of the first names on the team sheet again this season. The fact that he picked up 12 assists last season proves that he is not just a goal scorer and this should increase his appeal, also increasing his appeal is the fact that he is on penalties and he could therefore prove to be worth considering as a cheap 3rd striker.

Jamie Vardy (37 appearances, 16 goals, 10 assists) (£5.0m)
Vardy scored more goals from open play than other player at the club last season, however he featured in just one of their last seven games which would suggest that he is unlikely to feature regularly this season. Despite this, Leicester have offered him a new long-term deal to ward off interest from other clubs. Should Pearson choose not to bring in a new regular partner for Nugent, Vardy may indeed become a fantasy possibility!

Chris Wood (26 appearances, 4 goals, 5 assists) (£4.5m)
Wood struggled to break into the team last season due to injuries and the form of both Nugent & Vardy. At 22 he still has age on his side as well as World Cup experience in South Africa with New Zealand. In recent days there has been talk of a bid from Wolves for the Kiwi so his days at the club could be numbered. As a little side note, Wood is my ‘claim to fame’. When he was a youngster back in NZ he played for the club I play for; Cambridge FC.

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New Arrivals
Marc Albrighton (Aston Villa and Wigan; 23 appearances, 0 goals, 1 assist) (£4.5m)
The former England age grade player has been at Villa since the age of eight. He is not the most prolific of fantasy players although back in 2010-11 he managed a staggering (by his standards) five goals and two assists. His main asset is going to be his price; a cheap bench player who looks a guaranteed starter.

Matthew Upson (Bright and Hove Albion; 43 appearances, 2 goals, 3 assists) (£4.0m)
The well-travelled 35 year old brings a wealth of experience that the newly promoted team will benefit from. This will be Upson’s tenth club and if he can cement himself as one of the first choice centre backs he may be good bench fodder for your team. Fixture wise Leicester have an awful start to the season, so this maybe a good opportunity to assess who will start. At 35 it is debatable whether he will still be a regular in the premier league.

Fixtures
Welcome back to the big league Leicester, now have the draw from hell! The Foxes play: Everton, Chelsea, Arsenal, Stoke and Manchester United in their first five weeks! On the plus side, it gives you a few weeks to decide who, if any, you want when their schedule becomes a little kinder in November.

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Summary
Gallant Pioneer gave you a song in his summary, well Leicester City’s anthem is ‘When You’re Smiling’, hopefully the Foxes fans are still smiling after their baptism of fire! Leicester have a tricky opening schedule but if they can navigate this with some success then you may see some fantasy prospects appearing. They were champions of the Championship by April 22nd with two weeks to spare, so clearly they have the credentials to succeed in the Premier League.

Thanks for reading Promoted team analysis – Leicester. This article was written by NZ Alex (@alexwaterbaby)

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