Leicester have been well served by midfield schemers over the years. We come up with our top ten continuing today with numbers 8 & 7.
8. Neil Lennon, number eight on our list, was a brilliantly effective ball-winning midfielder who played a key role in the success enjoyed by Martin O’Neill’s Leicester team in the 1990s. Signed, as O’Neill’s first recruit, for £750,000 from Crewe Alexandra in 1996, a snip even then, the red-haired Northern Irishman went on to star in the team that won promotion in 1996, via the play-offs, established itself in the Premier League and won the League Cup twice. He played 208 times for the Foxes and scored nine goals. With O’Neill moving north of the border in 2000, and the Foxes struggling, it was no surprise when Celtic came in for Lennon. It was little compensation that City pocketed a healthy profit on the sale. Despite the sectarian threats he endured as a Catholic player, described in his autobiography, Neil went on to win numerous trophies in Scotland before ending his playing career back in England with Wycombe Wanderers and Nottingham Forest. He then went into coaching and served, successfully, as Celtic manager between 2010 and 2014 and again between 2019 and 2021 when Brendan Rodgers left for the King Power Stadium. Such is Lennon’s reputation in the East Midlands that he has twice been linked with a return to City as manager, in 2006 after Craig Levein was sacked and again when the Foxes were looking for a new manager following Nigel Pearson’s departure in the summer of 2015.
7. James Maddison deserves a place in our top ten because of his significant role in helping to establish the Foxes as a top-six contender. The Coventry-born midfielder was signed for the Foxes by Claude Puel from Norwich City. He played 203 times for Leicester scoring 55 goals before his transfer to Spurs after City were relegated in 2023. A skilful player with an eye for goal whose form won him an England place, Maddison put in his strongest performances in the number ten position although too often Brendan Rodgers played him as a wide midfielder where he was much less effective. As with Wilfred Ndidi and Youri Tielemans, James’ form dropped off in the 2022/23 relegation season and he frustrated fans with his inconsistent performances. In the latter part of the season, his mistake against Bournemouth which led to their winning goal and his penalty miss against Everton cost the Foxes dear. Maddison’s quality, though, cannot be ignored and his affection for the club seemed genuine.
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