Brendan Rodgers’ verdict on Wilfred Ndidi as a centre-back

Leicester City have been in a defensive injury crisis for some time. Made worse by COVID-19 cases. Here is why Brendan Rodgers chooses Wilfred Ndidi.

During the Newcastle United 4-0 win and a few times before, the Foxes boss has utilised the defensive midfielder as a centre-back when other options have been available. Those decisions are often critiqued for upsetting the rhythm in midfield, though are also often shown to be successful.

Looking at the Newcastle fixture, Jonny Evans picked up an injury in the early stages of the match. Instead of bringing on one of the development players such as Benjamin Nelson and Lewis Brunt, Rodgers opted to use Ndidi and bring on Boubakary Soumare.

The Nigerian international was initially uncomposed but improved immeasurably throughout the match as he acclimatised to the CB position. In essence, the player began to understand their role and fulfilled it excellently.

Why Leicester City use Ndidi

According to Transfermarkt, the midfielder has started as a centre-back only eight times across his entire career, four of those under the Northern Irish gaffer here at the King Power. There are also occasions where the Nigerian has switched to a CB during a match.

The boss has his reasons to use Ndidi at the back. As reported by LeicestershireLive, Rodgers commented on why he opted to use the DM instead of selecting one of the younger players post-match.

"“Wilf, going back in there, even though he hasn’t played it so much, I know he’s a player who gives everything in that position and he’s dominant in the air”"

Playing primarily at the base of a midfield three or alongside Youri Tielemans, Wilf is the defensive core and an absolute engine in midfield for Leicester City. The Foxes have used him to better control games and disrupt the opposition.

It is not so much a stretch to alter his role from one of midfield disruption to attacking disruption. The only major change is where Ndidi fulfils that role. It is also worth noting that because the player is an engine, this makes the Nigerian an ideal candidate to fill in at CB when your side face pacey or strong attackers.

However, I would argue we still have better options to fill in there. The main reason I’d say this is that by putting Big Wilf at the back we are removing the player from the midfield. Understanding of roles and system is critical to winning matches, so by removing him we are weakening ourselves against stronger opposition.

The world-class player does the job but does his own job much better. Therefore, in the future, playing a Ryan Bertrand, Timothy Castagne, Nelson, or even a Hamza Choudhury could be a better idea, if not a perfect solution for defensive problems.