Leicester 1-1 AS Roma: The difference was shot creation

At the halfway stage, it’s all to play for between Leicester City and A.S. Roma. The first leg, hosted at the King Power Stadium, ended in a 1-1 draw as Gianluca Mancini’s own goal in the second half restored neutrality after Lorenzo Pellegrini’s first-half strike.

The game went as expected: Brendan Rodgers’ side controlled the ball (68% possession), and in doing so, limited the chances for the Italian side. Unsurprisingly, considering it’s José Mourinho at the helm, A.S. Roma sacrificed a lot of their “static possession” intent, to play in a deep shape and execute counterattacks. This has been a difficult style for City to puncture against, deep blocks require intricate play (and a lot of patience) to break down.

With 68% possession, the Foxes only managed two shots on target — the same as their opponents. This wasn’t due to a lack of shooting opportunities, as across the fixture they accumulated 13 shots, just with a poor return on investment. However, credit where it’s due, I Giallorossi did an excellent job of defending their box, with Chris Smalling being an important part of that.

I would accredit some of the blame to Leicester City’s positioning in the final third. Jamie Vardy was isolated as the single forward, as both Ademola Lookman and Marc Albrighton (the starting wingers for Rodgers) held natural width for the majority. In the centre of midfield, James Maddison and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall featured as the roaming box-to-box players, but did so with a fascination to the half-spaces on both sides. All of this left Vardy as the singular option centrally.