For the third time in three games, Brendan Rodgers selected a different formation for his Leicester City starting XI — highlighting the strength of his Foxes squad, but also his indifference towards who should be starters.
At the Amex Stadium, it was a 4-3-3 structure, which is a fairly different composition to the setups Brendan Rodgers has been utilising with Leicester. Most notably, it was three central-midfielders; Wilfred Ndidi, Youri Tielemans, and Boubakary Soumaré, with the former two being stalwarts for the Foxes and the latter adding a different dimension in midfield.
This trifecta enabled a different forward line for Rodgers, this included James Maddison playing as a “false” right-winger. Instead of utilising him as a number 10/attacking-midfielder, he was placed on the right-side of the front three — alongside Harvey Barnes and Jamie Vardy.
For the defence, it was fairly simplistic in its approach. Pairing Jannik Vestergaard (left centre-back) with Ryan Bertrand (left-back) was smart from Rodgers as the pre-established relationship the two players had from their former club, Southampton, utilised the chemistry they already possessed. Adding Çaglar Söyüncü and Ricardo Pereira on the right-side was conventional.
The starting XI wasn’t overly dysfunctional, although playing James Maddison in this semi right-winger, semi central attacking-midfielder role wasn’t the correct decision. This wasn’t even hindsight, this was the first note I made for the entire fixture — especially with a brilliant option on the substitute bench in summer signing, Ademola Lookman.
Out of possession, Maddison didn’t aid the Leicester City press at all. The inverting attacking movements he was making, often forced him to be out of position when Marc Cucurella (Brighton & Hove Albion’s left-back) received possession for The Seagulls. This freedom was a key out-ball for Graham Potter’s side, and negated any kind of press the Foxes tried to initiate.
This of course does have a flip side — did Maddison offer enough in possession to outweigh the obvious negative defensively? Ultimately, the answer is a resounding no. In his forty-five minute “cameo”, his 19 touches, eight accurate passes (61.5%), one unsuccessful dribble, and nine possessions lost actually hindered the buildup for Rodgers’ side. However, this isn’t aimed at Maddison, my frustration lies with the manager.
Ademola Lookman was a crucial component of the goal the Foxes scored in the second-half. His natural winger positioning facilitated a late overlap from Ricardo Pereira, and also dragged the Brighton & Hove Albion defensive line far enough back that Youri Tielemans had ample space to deliver an excellent ball to the back-post for Jamie Vardy to score. Aside from just this, Lookman was electric. Constantly looking to progress the ball via carries, always ensuring a successful rotation of possession — particularly into a player with space to push forwards. His stats, which are also gathered from one half of football, couldn’t be further adrift from Leicester City’s number 10.
Contextually, Brighton did drop off for the second-half and allowed the Foxes to gain momentum. Regardless; 35 touches, four (out of four) successful dribbles, 14 accurate passes (82.4%), two key passes, and two fouls won, highlight just how proficient the RB Leipzig loanee was. The majority of the positive attacking actions for Leicester City came from the right, and that’s down to Lookman and his partnership with Ricardo Pereira.
However, this wasn’t the only issue I had with Rodgers’ system. I did a really, really long scouting article (available here) on former LOSC Lille midfielder, Boubakary Soumaré, and deduced that the Frenchman was exceptional at receiving possession in depth, pivoting 180 degrees upon reception and progressing the ball vertically through the pitch. Something that the Foxes struggled with versus Brighton — and have struggled with thus far this season. Starting Soumaré seemed to be Rodgers’ answer to this glaringly obvious issue, alas, that wasn’t the case.
In the midfield three, Soumaré was fielded as the most “advanced” option. In an interview just after signing the 22-year-old, Brendan Rodgers stated that he wanted to convert his qualities in the depth of the pitch and make him more of a “goal threat” — hence playing him as the most advanced midfielder. I cannot stress how much this negates his profile, but also overlooks the inherent qualities he could’ve aided LCFC with throughout this fixture.
Instead of having an excellent ball-player receiving possession from the defence (in Soumaré), the Foxes had Wilfred Ndidi — the club’s statistically “least threatening outfield ball-player”, on task to progress and recycle possession. Soumaré was tasked with drifting into pockets (of which there were very little) behind Brighton’s midfielders, and receiving very little time on the ball due to the Nigerian’s lack of penetration in possession.
The obvious solution to all these issues is to start footballers in their “natural” positions. Instead of fielding Maddison as a right-winger, play Ademola Lookman there, have the Foxes number 10 in central-midfield attempting to find pockets of spaces between the lines — ahead of Soumaré who hasn’t played a role like this before in his professional career. And, if the defence don’t require as much screening — but want a lot of verticality in midfield, start Soumaré over Ndidi (or Tielemans) and you’ll have a fully functional system.
For the first time in almost six years, Leicester have managed to maintain all of their key assets from the year prior. It’s a chance for the club to really progress and puncture the elite of the Premier League, but utilising players in roles they’re uncomfortable with — for no real potential upside — is going to bottle-neck the productivity of a great squad. This isn’t something Rodgers has got wrong often, but needs to realise the detrimental impact of these decision.