If there can be such a concept as a relegation six-pointer in October, then Leicester City’s Monday night clash with Nottingham Forest is surely it. The Foxes welcome their East Midlands rivals to the King Power Stadium, sitting three points below Steve Cooper’s men on a solitary point at the Premier League’s basement.
Brendan Rodgers will be relieved that there are no fresh injury concerns on the back of the latest international break, with Wilfred Ndidi’s precautionary exit from the Nigerian squad initially a concern. The Sky Sports clash pits two clubs with diametrically opposed summer transfer policies, with the hosts welcoming only Wout Faes as an outfielder into the first team fold, while Forest opened the floodgates to over 20 new arrivals.
With both sides exceedingly leaky at the back, there are sure to be a ton of goals – and failing that a plethora of opportunities. Here at Foxes of Leicester, we compiled our list of three things to keep an eye on during the crucial encounter.
Leicester City’s shape
A hot topic during this spell with no on pitch action has been whether the manager will attempt to bolt the back door by adding a third centre-half into the first team. This might seem like the sensible option, but the severe lack of pace or acceleration exhibited by both Jonny Evans and the new arrival Faes means it could be a recipe for disaster.
Key to this could be the selection of Harvey Barnes, whose inclusion further up the pitch often dictates the personnel involved behind. If Rodgers feels this is a fixture where he might see little joy on the flanks, the No.7 could be sidelined in favour of a 3-back system with width supplied by James Justin and Timothy Castagne.
However, goals haven’t been the issue for the blue side of the Trent this year, and sacrificing one of your most effective attacking outlets when you’ve shipped more goals in your first seven top flight games as anybody since the 60s hardly seems like a productive proposition. Jamie Vardy has been at his best in recent years when he’s had creative sparks around him, and with the Foxes forward likely to regain a starting spot, leaving him isolated without Barnes and/or Maddison to provide would be unwise.
If the City legend was consigned to the bench, we could see a front two, both of whom were on the scoresheet against Brighton last month, of Kelechi Iheanacho and Patson Daka. This would again facilitate a wing-back system with James Maddison operating in his most effective role behind a striking partnership.
Nottingham Forest’s defence
For all the talk of Steve Cooper’s side bringing in over 20 reinforcements, the Reds still lined up for their last Premier League outing against Fulham with a very ordinary back three. Steve Cook and Scott Mckenna, who have both conceded silly handball penalties already this year, were alongside loan man Willy Boly, forming a trio that doesn’t exactly instil fear into any top flight attackers.
Without the ball, Forest will sink into a back five, with Neco Williams and Renan Lodi dropping back from the wide areas, the latter of which was patently talented enough to play in the Champions League for Atletico Madrid last season. Being trusted to perform in a Diego Simeone rearguard requires some serious discipline and professionalism, and the Brazilian is more than capable of contributing in an offensive sense.
Loic Bade, who was reportedly a Leicester target before they turned their attention to Wout Faes, is now a Forest player, and he could be in line for a first Premier League start, especially given that the side he joined has conceded 12 goals in its last three outings. This is the first of three all-Midlands fixtures for Steve Cooper’s side, and establishing a settled formation, starting from the back, could be key to success ahead of this crucial period.
Boubakary Soumare
Wilfred Ndidi has been out of sorts for some time, and this fixture could finally be the time for his direct competitor for the holding midfield role to shine. Soumare was a bright spark on a dreary night for the Foxes as they limped to a 0-1 reverse against Manchester United in September, but followed that up with a weak display against Brighton three days later.
With his short-term future resolved, the Frenchman will be hoping to answer the questions that are still lingering over him after a severely underwhelming first season in the top flight, which has to be caveatted with the personal issues he was dealing with midway through. It’s clear that he’s capable of performing, after all he won the Ligue 1 title with Lille, but it’s time for the midfielder to show that the step up to the Premier League hasn’t been too soon.
If he is included from the start, it’s likely that he’ll be having to contain at least one of Lewis O’Brien, Jesse Lingard or Morgan Gibbs-White. The latter is a doubt for this one but could still feature, with the former being one of the encouraging aspects of Forest’s disappointing opening to the season.