West Ham United Vs Leicester City: Q & A with Leicester Mercury’s James Sharpe

Leicester City face West Ham United on Friday as they face the David Moyes-led Hammers in what is being dubbed as a particularly crucial game for the home side.

The Foxes will themselves see the visit to the Olympic Stadium as a great opportunity to get back into the top-half of the Premier League table, meaning that it’s important for Claude Puel’s side to bring their A-game to London. Furthermore, the fixture against West Ham is the easiest that Leicester City will get for some time, and that only highlights what three points here could potentially mean.

Ahead of tomorrow night’s encounter, Foxes of Leicester talked to Leicester Mercury’s James Sharpe, as the award-winning journalist reflected on the upcoming game.

Leicester City

Leicester City look a better side than before. Is that down to Craig Shakespeare’s absence or Claude Puel’s presence?

"“It’s more Claude Puel’s presence. When he was appointed, there were concerns about the style of play he would try to adopt. All the talk from his time at Southampton was of a boring style of play. That could not have been further from the reality. His first message to Danny Simpson was to get further forward, and to start Demarai Gray and Riyad Mahrez in the same side. Leicester are back playing fast, attacking football that is full of flair, and Puel should take credit for that”."

Leicester City may have lost to Manchester City, but the overall quality of the performance wasn’t too bad. Do you think a similar performance will get the job done against West Ham United?

"“For the first 25 minutes or so against Man City, I thought Leicester did pretty well. They matched the Premier League leaders, got in their faces, and caused them problems, albeit without creating too many clear-cut chances. In the end, though, Man City’s quality shone through. They are the best team Leicester have played since their return to the Premier League by a mile. West Ham are nowhere near that good. If Leicester can produce the same levels as the opening stages of that game, I fancy them to do well”."

People have been talking about the pace of Jamie Vardy, the flair of Riyad Mahrez and the energy of Demarai Gray, but there hasn’t been as much mention of Wilfred Ndidi’s rise, who has been truly magnificent amid the side’s recent resurgence. How important do you think he is to the team – if at all?

"“Following N’Golo Kante’s departure after the title-winning season, the lack of an energetic ball-winner meant Leicester were unable to succeed playing 4-4-2. They were overrun in midfield every game. Then Ndidi arrived in January, and suddenly Leicester had that kind of player again. He adapted to the pace of the Premier League straight away, and soon became a crucial member of the team. We tend to forget that he is still only 20. He plays with a maturity and influence far beyond his years. After Danny Drinkwater’s departure, Ndidi became Leicester’s main man in midfield and he did struggle a little without an experienced ball-player alongside him. Ndidi is a phenomenal ball-winner but his distribution can sometimes let him down a bit. Since Vicente Iborra’s arrival, though, Ndidi has been able to thrive again. Iborra is able to dictate the tempo, and play the ball, freeing up Ndidi to get on with winning the ball back”."

Late last game, we saw Claude Puel play Jamie Vardy and Kelechi Iheanacho on the wings with Islam Slimani up top. Is that the way forward for the Foxes?

"“In a word, no. Leicester are at their best with Jamie Vardy down the middle snapping at the heels of the last defender. He is the team’s talisman and they need him to press from the front and be in the best position to score goals and be a threat. That is down the middle. We have seen with England that Vardy, despite his pace and endeavour, is not a winger. That does, though, raise problems for Puel on how to get Slimani and Iheanacho into a team in positions that suit them as well. Leicester tend to play a 4-4-1-1, but neither Slimani or Iheanacho are suited to that role behind the main striker. They would be better alongside Vardy, but Leicester rarely play that way”."

Finally, what kind of a performance are you expecting against West Ham United? Confident of a win or wary of a sudden change in the Hammers’ form?

"“Puel made a point in his press conference to be wary of a Hammers backlash, at home under a new manager. But I do think that if Leicester start as aggressively as they have been doing under Puel, and especially if they get an early goal, they should be confident of an away win. If they can get an early goal, with the levels of apathy and frustration among their fans and lack of confidence among the players, then West Ham could struggle to respond”."