After the loss of Wilfred Ndidi, Leicester did not immediately feel the impact due to their fall into the EFL Championship. At that time, the signing of Harry Winks, the promotion of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, and the balance of more attack-minded and defence-minded midfielders allowed us to perform well. However, our return to the Premier League and disastrous Championship campaign showed what we had been missing.
A midfield engine. Without someone to run around, disrupt the opposition, press well, mark tight, and help retain the ball, the King Power side crumbled under pressure and struggled to force turnovers in otherwise non-dangerous positions. This was the hallmark of the Nigerian, and a massive boon from the partnership of KDH and Winks. Oliver Skipp has been 'fine', but could never replace that.
Unsurprisingly, the former Tottenham Hotspurs midfielder (the first one that is) has finally departed Russell Martin's squad. After a poor season, an attitude which did not meld well with an angered fanbase, and a seeming arrogance to once again believe they were too good to fail, left Winks as enemy No.1 for Leicester City supporters. Now he is gone, it is time for a replacement to help get the Foxes out of the depths of League One.
An Anchor and an Engine
Our midfield has been gutted over the last couple of seasons. Skipp and Louis Page will need more than just the promotions of - hopefully - Will Alves and Sammy Braybrooke to support. After all, Hamza Choudhury (who I expect to be given the captaincy) will need to be the first-team right-back with Ricardo Pereira's departure. This means we will have to sign midfielders or loan them in.
We have already signed a creative, attack-minded midfielder in Ipswich Town's former captain Conor Chaplin, who has already made himself a fan favourite with well-worded interviews. The link to Greg Docherty is extremely similar: a leader's mentality, an experienced player in promotion pushes and relegation scraps, and a powerful talent who could genuinely improve the team as it is.
This is a player whose reliability and injury record are amongst the cleanest and least damaging. Although I suppose we thought that when we brought in Conor Coady before he immediately got injured for us. Anyway... with the Scottish midfielder having played close to 3,000 minutes a season for the last three, and only being 29-years-old, should Martin's recruitment team make the move, they would be hiring someone for at least a few seasons of intense promotion-chasing football.
This seems to be the greatest quality offered by Docherty. The player mostly sits at the base of a midfield as a No.6, but has also played in a hybrid No.6-8 box-to-box role, offering his high-octane pressing style across the pitch. This is familiar to the days of Ndidi. The talent often receives the ball under pressure, supposedly having the ball control and core strength to turn quickly, retain the ball from opponent pressure, and lay it off to more progressive midfielders, rather than passing back to defenders.
Docherty accumulated over 196 defensive actions across the previous season with Charlton, and won 80% of his aerial duels. Again, this is an area the Foxes have struggled with in previous seasons, despite the tallness of their central defenders, and bringing in players who can make the most of our set pieces both offensively and defensively will only serve to strengthen the side.
Leicester City seem to be pushing for a leading midfield for their push out of League One, focusing on bringing in engines, consistent players, and those who offer something defensively. Although these are only links, and the likelihood of convincing Docherty to come back down to League One with Leicester seems slim, Martin's recruitment at least seems more intelligent than the transfers of previous campaigns.
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