Explaining the importance of Lookman as a permanent signing

Leicester City is starting to rekindle some form after another great performance was submitted versus Wolverhampton Wanderers. The result wasn’t as pleasing, a narrow 2-1 loss. But, that’s three great performances from Brendan Rodgers’ side in a row, hopefully turning a corner (not the set-piece kind) on what has been a dismal campaign thus far.

In a slightly different style, I’ve decided to focus on an individual performance from yesterday’s fixture, and that was the work of left-winger, Ademola Lookman. The recently converted Nigerian international has received a lot of plaudits for his work on Sunday afternoon — most notably for scoring the singular Foxes goal. Yet his overall game was impressive and has been for a little while. Let’s dissect the numbers and outline why I’m doing this article about him.

When the Leicester are full-strength, Harvey Barnes is the fixed left-winger in Rodgers’ 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 formations. His absence — due to a tight hamstring, enabled a start on that side for Ademola Lookman (only his fifth start as an LW this season, with sixteen starts on the opposing right-wing). His productivity has been largely documented as more successful from the left; three goals versus two goals and two assists on the right, with certain fans asking for the exploration of Barnes on the right, freeing up a spot for Lookman to play from the left.