Saturday was a rough night for the Foxes at the Emirates Stadium. In what was an embarrassing effort, Arsenal defeated Leicester City with a score of 4-2. It was a dry and passionless display by the team. However, there were still bright spots and positives to be seen. It’s hard to see those positives when there’s so much negativity to look at. But, those positives are what help Leicester retool themselves to the standard they should be at. A few players played really well against Arsenal.
The most eye-popping and note-worthy player was Kelechi Iheanacho. Brendan Rodgers’ side had no offensive firepower in the first half. The foxes would only get one shot on target in the first half. That one shot on target came off a miraculous run from Wesley Fofana; our centre back.
It was definitely a beautiful display by Fofana, but our only attempt on target can’t be from miracle runs by defenders. It’s sad and embarrassing from the attackers and midfielders. If that first half wasn’t rough enough, it continued the same way in the second half.
No fire power at all. An own goal from William Saliba thankfully kept Leicester in the game. It is really challenging to win games off of just own goals. Rodgers understood that. So with the team being down 3-1 in the 70’ minute, Rodgers subbed on Iheanacho.
That’s when things would start rolling offensively. Iheanacho would assist a goal just four minutes after he was subbed on. James Maddison and he had some great back-and-forth play. Iheanacho then delivered a beautiful reverse pass to Maddison who was able to drill a shot right underneath Aaron Ramsdale. This would be the only goal East Midland’s team would end up scoring, but Iheanacho played just as well the rest of the game. His creativity upfront provided Leicester with attacking opportunities.
Maddison was another player who played well against Arsenal. However, he did have a rough first half. The team simply couldn’t get him the ball. This really helped Arsenal get a jump on Leicester in the game. However, Maddison was able to turn it around in the second half. His willingness to shoot from anywhere and shifty dribbling provided Leicester with the creativity they were lacking in the first half.
Madders’ goal also reminded us why he’s one of the best attacking midfielders in the Premier League. His beautiful linkup play with Iheanacho was gorgeous and it was something we haven’t seen the whole game. Please select the ‘Final page’ option below to complete the article.
Then against one of the better goal keepers in the league, Maddison was able to power a shot right between Ramsdale’s legs. All in all, it was a great display by one of the best players on our team.
That last player who proved himself and showed his promise to the team was James Justin. It’s hard to give a defender some props after allowing four goals, but Justin showed some unique traits that can really benefit Leicester in the future. He can change the speed of the game within the snap of a finger. If he can get the ball at his feet he is willing to get the ball up the field as quickly as possible before delivering it off to a teammate. This type of play is massive for a team that plays so slow at times. We need a guy who can change the tempo and make the team play quickly.
Overall, it was a rough game for the East Midlands team. There was a lot of sluggish and unmotivated play on the pitch. But, some players played well. That is something the team and the staff need to focus on. There needs to be more of a focus on seeing what went well and building around it.