In an uninhibited race between two feral horses to fondle the Premier League trophy, it has come down to a bunch of rapscallion Foxes to decide as to who gets to caress the silverware, and who gets to salivate from afar. Whoever the gruntled, whoever the disgruntled, Manchester City Vs Leicester City could be historic.
You’ll have to go all the way back to 1986-87 for the last time that Leicester completed a league double over City. Both were relegated that season, while the title went to Merseyside. No, not Liverpool – it went to Everton.
Call it a coincidence, but if the Foxes do get that double again, then the title could be on its way to Merseyside again – this time to the Red side of it after 29 hurtful years. But there’s only one problem: Pep Guardiola and his industrious dandies.
They’ve lasted for 36 games – nearly 3,500 minutes – and they will know that if they can last another 90, then they’re perhaps a formality, a passeggiata away from history.
A win on Monday and City will just need to beat Brighton and Hove Albion on the final day to retain the title. Only Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United and Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea have done that in the Premier League era.
Not to forget, another win for City against Watford in the FA Cup final would see them become the first English club to win the domestic treble. And how very mad that all of this relies heavily, if not entirely, on one clash at the Etihad Stadium.
This is one of those games that won’t necessarily be decided or dictated by the quality of the football or tactical battles or Jamie Vardy’s love for larruping the Big Six.
This is about City managing to contain themselves over the course of the 90 minutes that could either leave them devastated or in a state of delirium.
It’s such a huge game that losing your mind becomes easy. You do things you’re not supposed to do. The passes don’t connect, the tackles go wrong, you miss an open goal – it happens. If it doesn’t – and it is very likely that it won’t – then we’ll just have to take our hats off and applaud one of the greatest teams in English Football’s history.
If there is panic, though, then Vardy and company will make sure that there’s a party in Liverpool. Sure, this is going to be historic.
One to watch
Jamie Vardy. That’s all.
Quotes
"“What we are trying to develop here is a style not too dissimilar to Man City. When you haven’t got the ball, there is a real intent and hunger to get it back, and when you have got the ball you ask as many questions as you can,” said Leicester City manager Brendan Rodgers.“You have to work very hard, and in those moments when you break through the pressure you have to make the most of it, and that’s what we will hope to do.”"
Predicted XI
Schmeichel; Pereira, Evans, Maguire, Chilwell; Albrighton, Ndidi, Choudhury, Tielemans, Maddison; Vardy.