Foxes of Leicester
Fansided

How Leicester may lineup in 2021/22 with potential signings

By Dominic Wells

Boubakary Soumaré of France (R) (Photo by Marcio Machado/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)
Boubakary Soumaré of France (R) (Photo by Marcio Machado/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images) /
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Ryan Bertrand of Southampton (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
Ryan Bertrand of Southampton (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images) /

At full-back, Leicester City have a lot of quality options to tinker around with. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the starting full-backs (Timothy Castagne and Luke Thomas) from last seasons final game as the preferred option for Rodgers. However, a full pre-season for Ricardo Pereira, an increasing likelihood that Ryan Bertrand will switch the south coast for the East Midlands, and perhaps a speedy recovery from James Justin, could all throw make great cases for a starting spot. For me, the likeliest pairing will be Ricardo Pereira and Timothy Castagne – the former on the right-side and the latter as the left-back – with the others providing astute cover and rotations.

Moving into midfield, as stated before I’m confident Rodgers will opt for a 4-2-3-1 formation, therefore the Foxes will require a defensive-midfield pivot to add security to the back line. A lot of fans would like the inclusion of imminent signing Boubakary Soumaré, but I think the balance of Wilfred Ndidi and Youri Tielemans (if both players remain at the club) is exceptional – and one of the best partnerships in the league. With the speculation surrounding Tielemans position at the club (even though I’m hopeful he’ll sign a contract extension), I would definitely suggest fielding Soumaré inside the pivot.

Into the wings, and the first name on the team sheet will be Harvey Barnes. Despite suffering a setback in his rehabilitation from injury, the 23-year-old is expected to return for the start of the new season. His dynamism, direct progressive running, and goal-scoring threat from wide, will provide the Foxes with a more well-rounded approach to attacking sequences. On the right-side I think that Leicester City will field their first “new signing” of the season, as Rodgers has been fairly opaque surrounding his displeasure with Cengiz Ünder, but also how pivotal that role is within his structure. Some of the names that have been rumoured are Francisco Trincao and Jonas Hofmann – with player such as Robin Gosens and Bertrand being linked to play as full-backs, potentially allowing Ricardo Pereira to feature as a winger.