How Steve Cooper enhances Leicester's underutilised wingers
The King Power side sit 15th in the Premier League on 10 points after 11 matches played. Leicester supporters may lay the blame on a few factors which have prevented the Foxes from reaching higher away from the relegation battle in this campaign. Firstly, Steve Cooper's appointment was seen as regressive and lacking in ambition. Second, we have lost a lot of PL-level talent from the side. Finally, Leicester are failing to get the most out of their best.
Their best has got to be Abdul Fatawu and Stephy Mavididi. The pair are impressive attacking talents that complement each other perfectly and work well with Jamie Vardy in creating chances for each other to get on the end of a killer ball. This is where Cooper can either build a strong team or fall to the wayside like so many Premier League managers before.
Leicester City's best two wingers
Although I do think it is obvious that the pair are our best options, it would be best to underscore that point with a bit of proof. Mavididi and Fatawu are both in our top five for expected assists plus expected goals for players who have featured for more than 200 minutes. They can be critical to Leicester City: when Fatawu or Mavididi play well, they uplift all the players around them to a higher standard, and when they do not the Foxes seldom achieve a good result.
We have seen Fatawu come on and completely change a game in our favour, or the clinical precision of Mavididi completely bypass a goalkeeper and score wondergoals. As previously mentioned, the pair are complimentary: when one of them does something well, the other inevitably also performs better and supports the other brilliantly. Just think of all the chances created by one of them making a switching pass into the feet of the other.
Nonetheless, they are imperfect - as are all players. Abdul Fatawu can be wasteful in possession or when taking a chance, and Mavididi can be slow to get back and support the defence. These are elements Leicester City will need to develop if they are to improve their chances of survival. With credit to Steve Cooper, this is broadly what the club have worked on with the Ghanaian right-winger.