Explaining the importance of Lookman as a permanent signing

When playing an astutely created defensive structure — like Lage’s Wolverhampton Wanderers side, it’s crucial that you have ball-carriers in your side to remove opposition players from the block. Down the attacking-left, Lookman was exemplary at doing so. His involvement in the game caused Wolves to worry about his receptions and eventually pushed the 24-year-old further towards the wide touchline.

The moment in the game that was widely recognised was Lookman’s goal. An expertly crafted move down the Foxes right-side became a chance after Youri Tielemans played an inch-perfect pass through the lines for the advancing right-winger, Marc Albrighton. As the versatile wideman received the ball, he looked for a cutback into the box and there was Lookman to provide the angle — two seconds later, Leicester had their equaliser. Although, should it have been Patson Daka arriving in that area?

For me, the single striker should have been occupying the central space in the six-yard box, but instead, Lookman had drifted from wide-left to create an option in the vacated space. I’m very pleased with his awareness to plug the gap relinquished by the aforementioned striker, but left wondering why Daka wasn’t attacking that zone for the Foxes — his attacking movements since joining LCFC have been uncharacteristically poor when examined with his style at RB Salzburg.