Oliver Skipp's quiet renaissance on Filbert Way has been an achievement as well-earned as it is vital for Leicester City. While the former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder may not constantly impress all with blinding brilliance in every single fixture, he has become the quintessential engine. A player who performs the squad's most grueling, unglamorous and thankless yet indispensable work.
Recently, the £25 million man pulled back the curtain on the pristine, high-tech sanctuary of City's Seagrave training complex. In doing so, Skipp offered an illuminating glimpse into the tactical laboratory of Gary Rowett. The ex-Oxford City and Stoke City man appears to have gained the roster's respect.
What makes Gary Rowett tick at Leicester City
​The midfielder described a manager obsessed with the structural integrity of the collective. According to "Skippy", Rowett's methodology is rooted in an almost forensic approach to defensive discipline and simplicity.
Whilst on practice pitches, the gaffer reportedly demands a level of tactical synchronization that implies tighter regulations than previous. While freedom of creativity is encouraged, movements are choreographed in an attempt to ensure the Foxes are never caught in a state of disarray from back to front.
Skipp spoke of a coach who possesses a rare simplicity in clarity: stripping away the ornamental to focus on the what is required for a relegation fracas. Uncomplicated with reason.
"He [Rowett] has kept things really clear to the players," Skipp said. "The players go onto the pitch with a clear idea of what they need to be doing and not overcomplicating things. He's given ownership to the players as well, especially the forward players. He's always encouraging them to take risks and to be attacking and to show their qualities.Skipp - LCFC Live
"It's up to the defensive players to keep us more solid and keep the clean sheets we’ve been waiting for for ages."
​So surely a contingent boasting such seasoned experience and footballing guile has the requisite quality to preserve Leicester's status. Rowett is a specialist in EFL Championship dark arts, and Skipp is his most loyal lieutenant on the turf.
However, amid these flashes of elite coaching and individual industry, the broader picture remains stubbornly messy. The air around King Power Stadium is thick with a rather gloomy uncertainty; even with seemingly appropriate minds behind the scenes, the path to safety is cluttered with the wreckage of a hierarchy that refused to align.