Nobody could have scripted it any better as Leicester City settled their equation with a win against Liverpool after losing to them in the Carabao Cup.
The Blue army turned in great capacity to watch the final game of this year at the King Power against the second-ranked side in the Premier League. Courtesy of the club’s wonderful gesture of giving all home fans attending the game a free Beer or Bottle of Water and a Mince Pie or Caramel slice had already put the home crowd into a jovial mood.
The effort on the pitch matched only by the effort off it 🏟️
— Leicester City (@LCFC) December 28, 2021
Each and every member of the Blue Army played their part tonight 💙💙 pic.twitter.com/vmRbH3pgET
For Brendan Rodgers, this was a tough one as Liverpool was the last English side he had managed before Leicester City. It was a test for him to push Jürgen Klopp’s tactical outlines to the limit, which the Foxes did do in the first half of the Carabao Cup but couldn’t keep pace with the momentum during the second half against a much inexperienced LFC side.
The injury list was not doing Rodgers any extra favors as he had to pair a makeshift all-African centre-back line for the first time in his tenure. On paper, against Liverpool’s front three, that looks like a death penalty. But still, the Foxes showed resilience.
To provide some extra shielding to the backline, the Northern Irishman had put two CDMs into action as Hamza Choudhury & Boubakary Soumaré formed a diamond in the midfield along with Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and James Maddison a bit upfront. The tempo was high throughout the game from both the teams, with the visitors causing more problems with their possession. But the King Power club ran rampant whenever they found an opportunity to break into a counter-attack.
3 remarkable factors for Leicester City’s win
Kasper Schmeichel- After a long run of bad performances from the Leicester City shot-stopper, it was time that he had a game to remember. With securing his third clean sheet of the season, Schmeichel was saving everything which appeared near his sight. Starting by pulling out a magnificent penalty save to deny Mohamed Salah, he looked transfixed to overcome the odds of 1/8th. Till the very last minute, Liverpool kept on spraying everything at him. It required him to make four saves, three diving saves, and three inside the box. It would be accurate to say he had contained everything Klopp’s men tried to hurl past him. For many, Kasper was the obvious MOTM.
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Dan Amartey- The Ghanian excellence was excellent again alongside Wilfred Ndidi. Amartey’s performances often go under the radar when he shoulders the responsibility of carrying the backline for the Foxes whenever a first-choice CB goes amiss. He did not put a foot wrong in yesterday’s performance, where he made nine clearances and five-headed clearance.
Ndidi looked solid, partnering in an African CB line, but the sloppy error which conceded a penalty was something that could have completely changed the circumstances of the game. It would be a shame as Dan has to report for AFCON, which starts in January.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall- One thing that Rodgers deserves credit for is his slow integration of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall as a starter. We always got behind the player during his loan spell at Luton and always had high estimations of the talent. It was a memorable game for the midfielder as he filled in for Youri Tielemans and performed at those levels.
It was ‘KDH’, who tried to feed deliveries to Jamie Vardy and James Maddison, but his hit and trial saw one of his enchantments find the substituted Ademola Lookman in the 59th minute. It was not an easy finish, but Lookman nailed it to perfection at the near post to register an assist to KDH’s name.