Leicester City finally claimed their first victory in pre-season, with a 3-2 win at home to Villarreal. But, with Wesley Fofana receiving a long-term injury, potentially ending his season before its even began, the overall feeling from the fixture is a negative one.
Throughout my article, I will look to find positives in how Leicester will lineup without Wesley Fofana — whilst potentially outlining a possible replacement, more so a profile-based replacement, to ensure the Foxes faithful remain upbeat ahead of the new campaign.
First and foremost, it has to be mentioned that Fofana’s active and high octane defensive style definitely forces more challenges than that of a reserved defender. It’s perhaps not unlikely that an injury of this severity was sustained — but, and this is crucial, the tackle was almost certainly an act of revenge from Fernando Niño and isn’t sportsmanlike from the Spanish outfit.
I’m not going to get bogged down in the ins and outs of the foul, I think a lot of people have covered the emotional impact of the events online and done so with varying degrees of frustration. My job is to find solutions for Leicester City, so let’s do that. Please click below to continue reading.
Prior to the injury, I would still have argued the Foxes wouldn’t want to start the season with Wesley Fofana and Çağlar Söyüncü as a partnership. Both are front-foot active defenders, often vacating central areas to pursue the forward in possession. There’s a lot of studies that suggest the perfect composition of defenders is with a “cat and dog”. Essentially, one active defender who’s given the freedom to pressurise the forwards, and a reserved “cat” that sits in his position, dictates the structure of the defensive line and is an assured presence at the back — the profile of Jonny Evans.
With this in mind, I wouldn’t have wanted both the aforementioned “dog-styled” defenders to start and now, Leicester City have the chance to sign a player with a similar profile to Jonny Evans. It’s also worth noting, Brendan Rodgers has highlighted his structural preferences throughout pre-season, not a single use of a three, or five, back formation — therefore leaning towards back fours (most notably 4-2-3-1 and 4-4-2). The injury to a major centre-back will only force Rodgers’ hand even more towards a back four.
The player I feel the Foxes might pursue, and somebody who fits the previously highlighted “cat” profile is James Tarkowski.
I’m hesitant to match the fee Burnley will ultimately ask Leicester City to provide — somewhere in the £35 million region, as he’s 28 years old and is worth more to Sean Dyche’s side than any possible transfer. There’s also the frequently linked Ozan Kabak, who is potentially available as a free transfer — albeit more of a “cat” profile, but not quite the pedigree of player the Foxes will want as a starter, at least in his current state — the 21-year-old has a sizeable upside on his potential.
I’d be inclined to suggest a loan signing for Leicester City. They don’t need to commit to a centre-back to replace Fofana as he’ll return in due time, and the Foxes might have to pay over the odds because clubs realise they require a replacement. Regardless, I think the composition of the starting XI isn’t impacted too greatly with his absence — I was always of the mindset that Leicester City only wanted one of him or Söyüncü.
Overall, the starting XI in my eyes is as follows; Kasper Schmeichel. Ricardo Pereira, new signing (or Jonny Evans if fit), Çağlar Söyüncü, Luke Thomas. Wilfred Ndidi, Youri Tielemans. Ayoze Pérez, James Maddison, Harvey Barnes. Jamie Vardy — inside a 4-2-3-1. Yes, the injury is obviously devastating — particularly for Fofana, but, Leicester City remain a quality outfit and will hopefully still achieve greatness this season.