Leicester 2-3 Tottenham – 3 things we learned: The future and the bad

Jamie Vardy’s injury is a blessing in disguise

Okay, so this is a little clickbaity, but there is some truth in the matter. For years, the main criticism of Leicester’s attack is that they are too reliant on Jamie Vardy. Now, when you have a striker who is putting away 20 or more goals a season, I think it’s okay to be a little reliant on him. But, as many pundits love to point out, Vardy isn’t getting any younger, and so the East Midlander’s cannot rely on him playing and scoring week-in week-out.

Last season however, the Foxes’ top scorer wasn’t the Sheffield-born forward, instead it was the stunning form of Kelechi Iheanacho which resulted in him ending the season with 19 goals in all competitions. This was the first signs of a Leicester City who weren’t totally reliant on the goals of Jamie Vardy.

This season, the Foxes completed their task of signing a third striker: RB Salzburg’s Patson Daka. Daka’s raw pace rivals Vardy’s in his prime, as well as having the poaching instincts of the No.9. It was a slow start for the 23-year-old Zambian, but a breath-taking display in Moscow resulted in him scoring 4 goals in one game.

Still though, Vardy was first choice for Rodgers, with Iheanacho and Daka having to rely on the bench and cup competitions for their opportunities. This was until Vardy suffered a hamstring injury in the win against Liverpool, an injury which sees him out until March at the earliest. Add to that Kelechi Iheanacho’s absence due to AFCON, and Patson Daka finally has an extended time leading the Leicester line.