Foxes of Leicester
Fansided

Everton 1-1 Leicester: Three positives after more dropped points

By Dominic Wells

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall of Leicester City and Seamus Coleman of Everton (Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images)
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall of Leicester City and Seamus Coleman of Everton (Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images) /
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Everton’s English striker Demarai Gray (L) vies with Leicester City’s Portuguese defender Ricardo Pereira (R)(Photo by LINDSEY PARNABY/AFP via Getty Images) /

FBs could then position higher due to the GK’s command of the centre, as that pushed the CBs wider and covered wide transitions for the full-backs. The early exchanges saw frequent examples of the CBs receiving possession close to the corner flag, connecting either vertically with the full-back (again, due to the positioning) or recycling across the line into Schmeichel. His confidence to claim the ball to his feet despite receiving it in close proximity to his own net, enabled retention of the ball in the face of Everton’s unorthodox high-press.

To top it off, his excellent pass to Ricardo Pereira was the line-breaking pass the Foxes required to create the goal. Often, Schmeichel plays clipped passes into the full-backs, and this invites pressure from the opposing winger (as the ball stays in the air for a fixed amount of time), ultimately causing issues. But, the direction and speed of the pass into Pereira was judged to perfection, and it triggered an attack sequence that ended with Harvey Barnes placing a shot into the bottom-left corner. Without the presence of Schmeichel, this chance isn’t created. Please click the below link to be taken to the subsequent page of the match analysis.