Chance for Leicester to establish themselves on European map

Out of possession, the Foxes seemed to play a  low-block in a 5-3-2 formation. Thomas and Albrighton dropped into positions that aligned with the three centre-backs; Wes Morgan, Jonny Evans, and Justin, making a deep five at the back. These reserved positions, allowed the central defenders to step up when Manchester United’s forwards received the ball facing their own goal. This neutralised how Ole Gunnar Solskjær wanted to build attacks, as he plays into his forwards feet to connect the midfielders into their attacks. For almost the entire game, this worked extremely well.

Which Leicester City players impressed?

A special mention to Thomas and Justin, whose performances were exemplary at the back. Respectively, they had to deal with Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood – two of the most inform and exciting players in the league, and neither managed to imprint themselves on the game. Thomas disabled Greenwood’s attempts at cutting inside to shoot, nor allowed him to use the width. Instead, Aaron Wan-Bissaka saw a lot of the ball, as it was his overlaps from right-back that attempted to undo Thomas’ work – albeit unsuccessfully.

I think Justin is a good option as an outside centre-back in a three. He boasts exceptional recovery pace, of which he used versus Anthony Martial on multiple occasions. In possession, Justin is extremely confident – at times, maybe a little too confident. But, given the magnitude of the fixture and the importance of his role, the 22-year-old excelled under difficult circumstances.

I felt that Leicester City did lose slight attacking control replacing Iheanacho for Pérez, but in Rodgers’ defence, the Nigerian was beginning to look leggy, and high-pressing Manchester United was causing the Red Devil’s a lot of issues. Fresh legs should’ve compounded their problems, but it actually removed the progressive passing option Iheanacho is so good at offering.

It’s easy to use hindsight and dissect the decisions of Rodgers, but in the high-pressure moment, I didn’t disagree with his substitutions. If I was to be pedantic, I’d like to have seen Harvey Barnes slightly earlier on and I also disagreed with the sentiment that we should “hang on” until the second-half drinks break before pushing for a winner – but in the majority, I thought the Foxes were unfortunate in defeat.

There’s a host of impressive, historic clubs competing in the Europa League and it’s a chance for Leicester City to solidify themselves on the European map.