Leicester vs Liverpool: The Foxes’ best chance at holding back champions
On 13th February, Leicester City will host Liverpool FC at the King Power. Can the flying Foxes reign in the champions? Join FoL as we answer that question!
Leicester City will have to maintain the frustration upon the wayward Liverpool FC if they are to find a way to win. Let us not be either too optimistic or too pessimistic about this match.
The East Midlands side has the opportunity to take advantage of a ‘Red’ side who have lost to Aston Villa, Southampton, Burnley, Brighton & Hove Albion, and Manchester City! They have lost to a team of every colour and style. So, is it too much to ask we could do the same?
Well, maybe. They are still Liverpool FC, with one of the best starting 11’s (when fit) and arguably the best coach. The Foxes have got to be on their toes to hold back the champions, and will have to frustrate the Reds defensively.
Leicester City: in or out of form?
Leicester have been inconsistent at home this season. Winning five times, drawing once (the Manchester United match) and losing five. This is not great. Worse still is the variety of teams LCFC have lost to at home: from relegation fodder to top six contenders.
The last premier league match was the draw away to Wolverhampton Wanders. A match of incredible frustration and tension. Both teams were fine defensively. That was a predictable draw although.
Check out these articles (Carter, Bishop) analysing that match and what went wrong for the Foxes. What I will say here is that we lacked two things: penetration and space creation. Against such a stubborn defensive team like Wolves, LCFC struggled to find any space, and the players were not told to create space or move out of position too much.
The last match was the midweek fixture against Brighton & Hove Albion. This was a 1-0 win with a 94th minute goal from a resurgent Kelechi Iheanacho – a player a rave about constantly. And to state this clearly: ‘Nacho should be starting much more.
Love this post from Caglar Soyuncu!
What about the Liver bird’s form away? They have four wins, five draws, and two losses. Once more, this is uncharacteristic from what we have come to expect of the Reds. they are usually consistent. Of course, the loss of three centre-backs did not help them.
I would expect their form to pick back up as they introduce two actual centre-backs into the team: Ben Davies and Ozan Kabak. This would let them push Jordan Henderson and Fabinho back into midfield.
Let’s look at some stats!