Brentford 1-3 Leicester: Why it was a game of two halves for Foxes

I’m unsure if Brendan Rodgers asked the Foxes to focus their play down the attacking right, or if Under acknowledged he was winning his one-versus-one, but Leicester City certainly found success pressuring the left-back. Finley Stevens, at only 17 years of age, was struggling to adapt to the direct nature of the Turkish-international and was consequently dropping deeper to neutralise the space behind him. Without pressure, Under can build up speed, but also utilise his abilities to go either inside or out – a difficult scenario to defend for a full-back.

Leicester City also had Ricardo Pereira advancing from right-back, not to create an overload, but to provide an alternate route down the right-flank. Pereira’s movement is also difficult to track, as he’s comfortable providing both an under lap and an overlap when combining with his winger. However, as soon as Brentford took the lead, either coincidentally or tactically, Stevens played a lot more aggressive in his pressing/tackling and didn’t give any space to Ünder.

This removed a lot of the Foxes good play in the opening exchanges. Compounded by conceding from another corner, Leicester City seemingly lost confidence for the remainder of the half – with a lot of misplaced, poorly timed, and rushed passing in the middle third. The fluidity and combination play – between the midfield and Perez, that was instinctive had suddenly dissipated.