Brendan Rodgers’ 3 most disappointing 2021/22 Leicester results
By Will Kennedy
Yet in the first leg, we conceded first within the opening 15 minutes and left ourselves with a game to chase against an Italian Mourinho side – aka the master of sitting back and defending for their lives. Credit to Rodgers, his substitutions had an impact on the game, and Barnes’ good work led to Leicester’s equaliser.
After that though, we hardly threatened. In fact, in that game we only had two shots on target yet we dominated possession and had eleven corners. We saw against Rennes how critical it was to have more than a single goal advantage against a side in Europe. In not beating Roma in that first leg, we left ourselves with everything to do in Rome, a task made virtually impossible after a Tammy Abraham header.
Perhaps the biggest crime is the fact that the squad didn’t learn from the lessons they’ve been taught in previous rounds. Against Rennes we were taught the importance of winning your home leg, of making your opponent work for the victory. Against PSV we were let off the hook with the comeback, but we didn’t learn from it.
In fact, the whole season has been one giant example of this. As a squad, we haven’t learnt from the painful lessons we’ve been dealt on so many occasions. Some of this is down to the players, some of this is down to mentality, but a lot has to do with Rodgers himself.
In 2019/20 we were so close to getting top 4, but we bottled it. In 2020/21 we didn’t learn and, once again, bottled the most crucial games, the winnable games. Now, this whole season has felt like a broken record. Goals from set-pieces, conceding early, dominating the play but not actually putting pressure on the opposition. All these traits were on display against Rome in both legs.
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Rightfully, we talk about the physical rebuild in the summer. Clearly there are personnel changes that must be made. But as a squad, the biggest rebuild has to be in our ability to learn from the past. We need to recognise and remember the awful results, the disappointing moments, in order to progress. If we don’t, then Brendan Rodgers’ project at Leicester City is only destined to fail. A big summer is needed indeed.