Foxes of Leicester
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What’s going wrong for Rodgers at Leicester?

By Lachlan Onions

Leicester City's Northern Irish manager Brendan Rodgers (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)
Leicester City's Northern Irish manager Brendan Rodgers (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images) /
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Wesley Fofana of Leicester City (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images) /

Combination of other factors

Whilst Rodgers has to take some of the blame for the slump that LCFC find themselves in. It goes without saying that this isn’t entirely on him. The Foxes have been ravaged with injuries and COVID outbreaks this season, forcing the boss to give players starts that normally wouldn’t even get a look in. The squad depth has well and truly been tested this season and it is worth taking into account when looking at results.

The injury to Fofana in preseason threw a major spanner in the works, while Leicester were already in the market for a new centre-back at the time, with Wes Morgan retiring at the end of last season. Fofana’s injury meant that it was crucial that the Foxes found themselves a new defender.

That player would be Jannik Vestergaard, who on paper was a decent signing, albeit on the expensive side of things. His height would make him a solid player to bring on late in the game to deal with crosses.

When he signed, it looked like he would be utilised in the same way that Morgan was in the twilight of his career. However, with Leicester’s two first-choice defenders injured it has meant that Vestergaard has been called upon and so far has yet to prove himself as a worthy signing for the Foxes.

What is probably the most frustrating thing about the Vestergaard signing is the fact that he cost £15 million. LCFC aren’t in the position where they can spend loads of money as Rodgers pointed out.

Those comments naturally sparked a reaction for the Blue Army, with many believing that he was purely trying to cover up what has been a poor season for the Foxes. It seemed a polar opposite of what Rodgers’ attitude with the club has been like since he took over, where he has lauded praise for the east Midlands side for disturbing the usual top six.

I was fine with him saying that we have overachieved, which we have to an extent when you look at the size of Leicester City as opposed to those around us on the table. However, his recent comments give off the feeling that he has almost given up and that we have peaked.

While the Vestergaard transfer took a hefty chunk out of the transfer budget and as a result the Foxes did not make a signing in January for the second successive year. Whether Rodgers’ comments were him making a subtle plea for more transfer funds, or if he has genuinely has given up hope of guiding Leicester to the top four, only he knows.