The international break was busy for Leicester City players, so let’s have a look at their performances during the international break.
It has been a very busy international break for Leicester City players. That being said, it could have been even busier were it not for the injuries to the sensational James Maddison, Harvey Barnes, and James Justin.
A busy break for Leicester City players
In international senior teams, the call-ups were as follows:
Belgium: Youri Tielemans (CM), Dennis Praet (CM), Timothy Castagne (DEF)
Denmark: Kasper Schmeichel (GK)
Nigeria: Kelechi Iheanacho (ST), Wilfred Ndidi (CDM)
Northern Ireland: Jonny Evans (DEF)
Senegal: Papy Mendy (CDM)
Turkey: Caglar Soyuncu (DEF)
USA: Chituru Odunze (GK)
Wales: Danny Ward (GK)
Let’s look through each in turn. We shall analyse their results, performances, and what their time out on international duty could mean for the King Power side.
Belgium: the trio
The Foxes Belgian trio: Tielemans, Praet, and Castagne were called up for duty by Roberto Martinez’s star-filled outfit. Dennis Praet has been an unused substitute in their 3-1 win over Wales and 1-1 draw with the Czech Republic, but did feature in the sensational 8-0 win over Belarus.
Neither of the Foxes scored or assisted during those matches. The ‘starman’ (Tielemans) played every minute of their matches, as he has for Leicester City. Influential in both matches, he orchestrated the transition from defence to attack, and his passing has never been more clinical.
Timothy Castagne played only nine minutes including injury time in their 3-1 win over wales, but looked solid defensively – as he does – and put in quite the work horse performance for such little time on the pitch. He was much more involved in the match against the Czech side, playing every minute and putting in a spirited performance – including a yellow card.
Dennis Praet had a fantastic 71 minutes against Belarus, scoring and assisting on the night. He was integral to almost every single attacking play, providing passing intelligence and penetration throughout. Foxes teammate Tielemans replaced him at the 71st minute.
Denmark: the ‘Great Dane’
Leicester’s ever-present goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel played every minute of their games against Israel (a 0-2 win) and Moldova (an 8-0 win). He will likely feature again in their next match versus Austria, who unfortunately are not making use of Christian Fuchs’ services.
There is actually very little to say about his performances. The Great Dane had very little to do during both matches, and provided the crucial saves when necessary – including a very good save against Israel. Let’s hope he can keep another clean sheet versus Manchester City!
To be more honest, these were not the most difficult of fixtures for Denmark, so judging Schmeichel on his performance during these matches is perhaps a little misleading. At least we know he is a safe pair of hands!
Nigeria: the king and prince
Both the Nigerian king – Wilfred Ndidi – and prince – Kelechi Iheanacho – were involved in the Super Eagles’ Afcon qualifiers against Benin (a 0-1 win) and Lesotho (a 3-0 win) and have no further duties.
Iheanacho has been used as a second striker, starting just behind Victor Osimenhen in both matches, and was subbed off against Benin for the eventual goal scorer. The seniorman did not continue his red-hot form.
One man who never changes or fails to impress is Ndidi. As with Schmeichel, there is very little to say. The Leicester star continues to put in first rate CDM duties, breaking up opposition play and helping to threaten from set pieces. His performances were excellent, as they should continue to be when he next plays for the Foxes.
Northern Ireland: the defensive composer
Jonny Evans made his 90th appearance for NI over the break, unfortunately marking it with a 2-0 loss to Italy. He did not feature in their friendly 2-1 defeat against the USA. He will get another chance to impress against Bulgaria 31/03/21.
It is difficult to judge a player’s individual performance during a defeat, when we know that the whole team struggled to perform to the standards necessary against a very tough Italian side. That being said, Evans did orchestrate the back line, leading them to minimise the number of opportunities, and was heavily let down by his partners.
Senegal: debutant Mendy!
Papy Mendy got his debut in a 0-0 draw against the Congo Republic. Mendy took on the Ndidi role as part of a DM-to-CM pivot, and performed as can be expected of a player of his calibre. He was strong in the tackle, and his passing was great.
The only constructive remark is that he was less involved in the game than he has been previously for the Foxes, where he could be expected to play the same role.
He also featured in their 1-1 draw against Eswatini. He was much more involved in this match, playing through the whole game. His performance was as energetic and impressive as previous performances for Leicester City this season.
Turkey: the ‘Haaland test’
Caglar Soyuncu was his usual self on international duty. Involved in three matches against the Netherlands (a 4-2 win), Norway (a 0-3 win), and Latvia (3-3 draw).
Soyuncu was exemplary. With defensive performances to make even the biggest clubs in England flustered over signing the Turk. For that matter, I do not think Soyuncu would leave a high-flying Foxes team for Liverpool FC.
From hard tackles, his usual playing through the high press, and his fairly neat passing, Soyuncu has games to remember. Expect more of this when he returns from duty. Let us also not forget that he scored a goal and kept Erling Haaland quiet, truly passing the Haaland test and showing that he is a better GOAT candidate!
The only caveat being an all-round poor performance against Latvia, where he received a yellow card and his team looked defensively rattled throughout.
USA: Unused
Chituru Odunze – a youth goalkeeper for the Foxes – was called up once more to the senior USA team, as they partook in a couple of friendlies, where the goalie sat on the bench. It is difficult to get past Zach Steffan from Manchester City.
Wales: A Ward-like performance
Leicester City’s Welsh goalkeeper – Danny Ward – featured for Wales in two of their games against Belgium (3-1 loss) and the Czech Republic (1-0 win).
A loss to Roberto Martinez’s star-studded Belgium side is not anything to worry about. Belgium have some of the best midfielders – including Praet and Tielemans – and best attackers in Europe. However, Belgium did not have their best game, and Ward will feel like he could have done much more with some of those goals.
On the flip side, Ward put in an excellent performance against the Czech Republic. He made several great saves, did not concede any silly goals, and was an authoritative presence in the box. That is more like it Danny Boy!
In an international break of two halves for the Welsh international, he will hope his performances have earned him more credit with Brendan Rodgers. Ward has hardly featured for Leicester City at all this season – even in the cups – despite sound performances.
Leicester’s internationals performed well over the busy international break. Praet, Tielemans, Soyuncu, and Mendy will be knocking on Brendan Rodgers’ door, hoping to keep or gain first team spots ahead of a difficult run of fixtures for the King Power side.
These performances bode well for the Manchester City match, as players return fit and fired up. On that note, check out the injury round-up. Remaining games on Wednesday night include: the stopper vs. Austria; and Evans against Bulgaria.