133 years of Leicester City – 5 most influential City players
By James Lassey
Wednesday marked 133 years since Leicester City’s first ever competitive football match. To celebrate, Foxes of Leicester looks at the five most influential players to put on the Foxes shirt.
#5 Kieth Weller
Regarded by the Foxes faithful as the most talented player ever to wear the Foxes badge prior to the 2015/16 season, the winger joined the East Midlands club, having signed in 1971 for £100,000.
He went on to gain four England caps under caretaker manager, Joe Mercer. and the only criticism of Weller is the Foxes never finished above seventh place during his eight year spell.
Saying this, Weller alongside Frank Worthington, Jon Sammels and Alan Birchenall, City did play the most attractive football Filbert Street has ever seen.
Arguably his most famous moment for the Foxes came in the 1979 FA Cup tie against Norwich City. The winger sported a pair of white tights beneath his kit and scored in the 3-0 win, much to the dismay of the Norwich support.
Weller suffered from a rare form of cancer and sadly passed away in 2004, aged 58.
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#4 Steve Walsh
Born in Preston, Steve Walsh was bought to Leicester City in 1986 for £100,000 from Wigan Athletic. Known as a no nonsense defender before Brian Little’s arrival as manager in 1990, Little made Walsh captain. Roll forward two years and Little opted to employ the Englishman as an emergency striker.
Walsh went on to score 15 goals including one in the 1992/93 4-3 play-off final defeat to Swindon Town. His most memorable strikes came the following season in the local derby against Derby County, where his brace clinched the Foxes promotion back to the Premier League.
Overall “Captain Fantastic” scored 53 goals in 369 appearances in a spell that lasted 14 years.
While injury ruled him out for most of the 1994/95 season where City suffered relegation, the following season saw manager Martin O’Neill ensure Walsh played an integral part in the side that gained promotion.
He guaranteed legendary status in the coming years as he became part of what was the most successful era in the club’s history. He helped sustain four successive top-10 finishes in the top flight in addition to winning the League Cup in 1997.
He assisted Emile Heskey for the equaliser and Steve Claridge’s winner in the replay against Middlesbrough at Wembley.
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#3 Muzzy Izzet
Muzzy Izzet, a Turkish dynamic midfielder who made an instant impact following his loan move to O’Niell’s side in March 1996. He scored the goal which secured the Foxes a play-off place against Watford on the final day of the Championship season.
O’Niell made the temporary move permanent following their promotion and signed the fan’s favourite for £800,000 from Chelsea.
Izzet formed an undying partnership in the City midfield with Neil Lennon and Robbie Savage. The trio helped the Foxes claim four successive top 10 finishes in the Premier League as well as two League Cups.
Izzet’s will always be remembered for his spectacular volley against Tottenham Hotspur and his superbly executed over-head kick in the 2-1 win over Grimsby in 2002.
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#2 Jamie Vardy
The Jamie Vardy party begun all those years ago in May 2012 when he made his £1 million move from Fleetwood Town.
The 30-year-old talisman has scored 68 goals in 158 games and first struggled to make an impact in England’s second tier of football before helping Nigel Pearson’s side clinch promotion with16 goals in the Championship title winning campaign of 2013/14.
In Vardy’s first Premier League season he only found the net on five occasions. Then hell froze over the following season – the England international went on to break former Manchester United striker Ruud Van Nistelrooy’s record of scoring in 11 consecutive games.
The 2015/16 season also saw him pick up his first England Cap, in a season where he scored 28 times for club and country.
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#1 Wes Morgan
Current captain Wes Morgan, aged 33, has to go down as one of the most influential City players ever to play the game. He joined from arch-rivals Nottingham Forest for an undisclosed fee in January 2012 and has gone on to make over 200 appearances for the Foxes.
He has captained the club to both second-tier and Premier League titles as well as leading the way in the “Great Escape”, where the Foxes won seven of their last nine Premier League games to ensure survival.
Morgan has to go down as City’s most-improved player ever and the iconic image of the combative defender alighting the Premier League trophy at the King Power stadium in 2016 will remain in the City’s fans minds for decades to come.
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