Topic: Leicester City; Champions 2015-2016

[Pradan]

Getting to a stage where it'll need to be one hell of a collapse to miss out on top 4, I can't see it.

Recent history shows that occurs very often.

Villa were around 7ish points ahead of you around March time for the fight for 4th. Think it was 2009. Spurs were 7 or 8 points ahead of you in 2012 for the fight for 4th. Around March too. 2014 - we were trailing yourselves by around 9 points in February. I'm sure there are half a dozen more examples from the last 10 seasons. Southampton were around 8 points ahead of ourselves and Spurs around January last season, and finished below both.

6-9 point gaps have been shown to be cut down in an instant with only 2 or 3 months of the season left.

Leicester are currently around 8-14 points ahead of the CL chasing pack. We're in December! That gap could very likely be in the 6-9 range come January, February or March and by that time Leicester could find themselves in very different form.

[Caligula?]

I'm going to go with my initial instincts and say they won't finish in the top 4, but definitely top 6 and Europa. As others have said, it's well beyond a purple patch now. The momentum is with them. They're entertaining to watch, and they're playing very, very well. They'll have to hit borderline relegation form to drop out of the first 6-7 positions.

But come the turn of the new year, they're going into deep, uncharted territory. Most Leicester fans would have had one expectation this season; avoid relegation. But given that they've been doing so well and indeed leading the league for such a long time (along with how inconsistent everyone else is), I'm sure expectations for the second half of the season will have risen significantly. They've done so well that if they were indeed to drop out of the top 4 come season's end, a part of them will feel as if they've thrown it away given the huge opportunity they had. With expectations comes pressure, pressure their players will have never felt. Their 2 main players are Vardy and Mahrez. Personally I think Vardy will go in the winter transfer window. His stock will never be higher, and he and Leicester will know that quite well. Vardy himself will know that this will probably be his last ever chance to play for one of the biggest clubs in the nation, whoever that may be. He'll want to prove himself at a bigger club, and there's also that little thing of a much higher salary as well. He's earning a living after all. If any big, desperate club struggling for goals such as Chelsea or United come knocking on the door and offer over 20 million quid or so with 100k or more in wages, Vardy himself will be the first to push for the move. And Leicester will be foolish not to take the money and run. Think the same might go for Mahrez, although I think he's more likelier to stay until the end of the season than Vardy is. Teams that have already played them and gotten molested will change the way they go to the K Power stadium and how they play against them. They'll adjust their tactics. They'll treat them differently. You just know that someone like Pulis will park the bus and hope to nick a goal or two off a set piece. Other teams will be fighting for their lives, and they're not going to make it as easy to get beat as the first time around. They'll treat them as they would if one of the big boys came to town - they'll the team to beat. Top all of that off with an injury or two to someone like Huth or another player in there who does the much of the unnoticed and important dirty work without getting even 1% of the credit that Mahrez and Vardy are getting, and their rhythm will be upset which will inevitably lead them to dropping points.

[Chris~]

Why would it be foolish for Leicester to not take the money for Vardy? They're under no pressure to sell and they stand to make much more with him than without him. It isn't easy to replace goalscorers either. Vardy will be 29 in January, any club that spends around £30m on him is crazier than Leicester turning down that offer.

[Fiasco]

Why would it be foolish for Leicester to not take the money for Vardy? They're under no pressure to sell and they stand to make much more with him than without him. It isn't easy to replace goalscorers either. Vardy will be 29 in January, any club that spends around £30m on him is crazier than Leicester turning down that offer.

Because someone will spend that money on him. Be it City to cover for Aguero and have another British player in their ranks, be it a desperate United to add some firepower, be it Chelsea to again take some pressure of Costa or even someone like Spurs, someone will buy him if he wants to go and the price is around the 25-30 million mark.

Leicester will thank him for his service and reinvest in a younger player with similar attributes. It remains to be seen if Vardy can continue with this form anyway. He isn't established yet. I know he's scored goals wherever he goes but there's a chance this is a freak season and he will perhaps drop off somewhat. If I was Leicester I'd worry much more about keeping hold of Mahrez - that lad looks like a phenomenal player.

[Chris~]

Vardy's had like 4 good months at the top level, if he was 21 I could see it, but he's not. If they're going to buy a striker from this league they'll wait until the summer and spend big on Lukaku or even Kane. It's not like City, Chelsea or United regualry spend big on players 28+ either, the only one I can think of is Van Persie, Shevchenko as well if you want to go that far back.

[Lush is the best medicine...]

Vardy is out of contract in 2017 I think, can't see them getting that much for him if they sell next summer

[Chris~]

2018.

http://www.lcfc.com/news/article/190814-jamie-vardy-signs-new-lcfc-contract-1840114.aspx

[Lush is the best medicine...]

2018.

http://www.lcfc.com/news/article/190814-jamie-vardy-signs-new-lcfc-contract-1840114.aspx

my bad. Still will have a decent value next summer

[MNAA]

Ranieri has got them playing very good football. To win the league will be tough but don't mind them. Will inspire others. Destroying the myth that the league cannot be won without superstars and lots of money

[Gerrard#1]

They remind me of us in 13/14. Relying heavily on Mahrez (Suarez) and Vardy (Sturridge) with other players lifting their performance significantly.


I think they'll nick fourth, EL at worst.

[Magz50]

Think they're bang on nailed for 4th behind us, arse and city.

[rscanderlech]

I think that Leicester would be EXTREMELY silly not to capitalise on their situation and to try to sign one or even two very good players from non-top teams or who are not getting game time at top teams in January, whether on loan or in a permanent transfer.

From the point of view of those other players, especially at weaker teams, this is an amazing chance to win the title. From the point of view of the club, they know that whatever happens this season, they are finishing well inside the top half and most likely in a European spot - in fact probably in the top 4 - so they shouldn't have to worry too much about the financial impact of doing so.

They should go all out to sign one or two players in key positions: maybe in a position of weakness, maybe in attack in case of injury to Vardy or Mahrez. In shouldn't even be that hard for them to improve their squad in the weak areas.

[Aceldama]

I wonder which one Hodgson will pick up top in the summer.

[surfer. Fuck you generator.]

I don't think some have been paying enough attention to just how financially capable all the 20 clubs in the league are now. Leicester could easily sign and pay the top Italian and Spanish players outside of the top 3 or 4 in Spain and the top 6 in Italy, for example. That's a hell of a talent pool to choose from, before we even talk about the talent outside Bayern / Dortmund / Wolfsburg in Germany and PSG in France and the reserve players of the elite clubs. If they get their scouting and recruitment right, a big if, they could find top quality squad players in January, easily, the market is now open to all 20.

[rscanderlech]

I don't think some have been paying enough attention to just how financially capable all the 20 clubs in the league are now. Leicester could easily sign and pay the top Italian and Spanish players outside of the top 3 or 4 in Spain and the top 6 in Italy, for example. That's a hell of a talent pool to choose from, before we even talk about the talent outside Bayern / Dortmund / Wolfsburg in Germany and PSG in France and the reserve players of the elite clubs. If they get their scouting and recruitment right, a big if, they could find top quality squad players in January, easily, the market is now open to all 20.

That's true and they should really try their very best to get one or two key signings against their original financial planning because they are so unlikely to get this chance for many years.

[thelinnen]

Teams will start respecting them more if anything. Parking the bus for a point at Leicester suddenly becomes a good result, which is the mentality that big teams have to deal with almost every week. It happened to Southampton a couple of seasons ago and eventually they crumbled with a few injuries as well.

[rscanderlech]

Teams will start respecting them more if anything. Parking the bus for a point at Leicester suddenly becomes a good result, which is the mentality that big teams have to deal with almost every week. It happened to Southampton a couple of seasons ago and eventually they crumbled with a few injuries as well.

The difference with Leicester is that Mahrez and Vardy are really, really good, Mahrez in particular.

Also, if you remember Liverpool in 2013-2014 when we had a similar kind of unstoppable confidence as a team, I don't remember any issues with teams defending super-deep. Many teams still didn't have the scouting brains or tactical informationto do this and execute it well, and other teams still couldn't cope even with an appropriate tactic and good execution, due to the the combination of Liverpool's quality and unbelievable confidence.

I'm not suggesting that you are wrong, but I don't think it will cause them to collapse. A collapse will happen, if it happens due to two things, I think: 1. Injury to one or more of the two to three main players. 2. Two or three consecutive bad results removing the feeling of invincibility.

[thelinnen]

The difference with Leicester is that Mahrez and Vardy are really, really good, Mahrez in particular.

Also, if you remember Liverpool in 2013-2014 when we had a similar kind of unstoppable confidence as a team, I don't remember any issues with teams defending super-deep. Many teams still didn't have the scouting brains or tactical informationto do this and execute it well, and other teams still couldn't cope even with an appropriate tactic and good execution, due to the the combination of Liverpool's quality and unbelievable confidence.

We didn't have unstoppable confidence, we had Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge. With all due respect those two are on another plane of existence to Vardy and Mahrez.

To be fair we also had other players chipping in with goals. If either of Leicester's two get injured or hit a bad run of form, they lose half their goals.

[The North Bank]

Recent history shows that occurs very often.

Villa were around 7ish points ahead of you around March time for the fight for 4th. Think it was 2009. Spurs were 7 or 8 points ahead of you in 2012 for the fight for 4th. Around March too. 2014 - we were trailing yourselves by around 9 points in February. I'm sure there are half a dozen more examples from the last 10 seasons. Southampton were around 8 points ahead of ourselves and Spurs around January last season, and finished below both.

6-9 point gaps have been shown to be cut down in an instant with only 2 or 3 months of the season left.

Leicester are currently around 8-14 points ahead of the CL chasing pack. We're in December! That gap could very likely be in the 6-9 range come January, February or March and by that time Leicester could find themselves in very different form.

None of those times was a team top of the table and missed out on top 4. In 2014 you made a gap on us but both finished top 4, same with us and Spurs when chelsea won CL.
Leciester won't win the title, 3 teams can still overtake them, I can't see any more than those.

[McrRed]

It'd be interesting to do a poll of whether you think the could win the league based on your age. Long before football was invented in 1992 every now and then a team would come from nowhere and blow every one else away. A good manager. A squad who are right up for it. A bit of luck - refereeing decisions/avoiding injuries to key players. Suddenly anything becomes possible.
It's been a long time since it last happened but cloughie did it, oh, and a guy called Shankly.

[AndyMuller]

I like them a lot and I like Ranieri too seems a decent fella.

Think they will get top 4 which would be an outstanding achievement.

[Shite Name]

I was talking to 2 season ticket holders on Friday and they are loving it this season, 1 of they is Home & Away every week, he's always loved the away days for the atmosphere, but he said this season the home games are buzzing aswell, good luck to them, I'll never live it down tho if they do win the league with being a Liverpool fan from Leicester.

[surfer. Fuck you generator.]

I was talking to 2 season ticket holders on Friday and they are loving it this season, 1 of they is Home & Away every week, he's always loved the away days for the atmosphere, but he said this season the home games are buzzing aswell, good luck to them, I'll never live it down tho if they do win the league with being a Liverpool fan from Leicester.

No serious risk of that, for now. If we're in March with Leicester top and fit, you may want to relocate

[rawcusk8]

It's been a fantastic season for them and they thoroughly deserve all the plaudits they are getting. Will be interesting to see how they manage certain elements when they occur and no doubt they will. Their top players will no doubt have some sort of blip, injuries will have an impact and for me Ranieri has made alot about hitting that magical 40 point mark. Just wonder if psychologically anything changes once they hit 40 points, I know it's a long shot but certainly something worth keeping in mind. For what it's worth I think it's great seeing them do well, makes a change and certainly shows you dont need to spend over the top money to compete at the higher level of the league.

One thing that i'm curious about when they play us, We struggle against park the bus teams and teams that do well on set plays. Are Leicester a park the bus type or do they play a more open style? Admittedly I havent really watched any of their games apart from the Chelsea one recently and will be interesting to see how they set up against us. Will be a great game, i'm quietly confident we can disrupt their momentum.

[Smudgester]

I have to admit that yesterday was the day I thought there bubble would start to burst; their results against United and Chelsea weren't actually that impressive given the circumstances but I expected Everton to be tougher.

Didn't see any highlights but was it as close as the scoreline suggested?

Hopefully their run will stop on Boxing Day

[Zeb]

Want them to do really well this season, off the back of their start and their way of playing. Like Ranieri. Not many 'tinkerman' jokes around any more. But I do think the arse will drop off them over the christmas period. I think they've blitzed the start to this season and it'll start to tell on them second half of the season. Injuries and just exhaustion from the high tempo way they're playing. They just don't have the depth of squad to do it for the full season. That'll start matching teams adjusting to how they play too, which will make it that much more difficult. Would be delighted to be shown my arse on this come the end of the season, but they've still a huge distance to go yet.

[Gerry Attrick]

I don't think some have been paying enough attention to just how financially capable all the 20 clubs in the league are now. Leicester could easily sign and pay the top Italian and Spanish players outside of the top 3 or 4 in Spain and the top 6 in Italy, for example. That's a hell of a talent pool to choose from, before we even talk about the talent outside Bayern / Dortmund / Wolfsburg in Germany and PSG in France and the reserve players of the elite clubs. If they get their scouting and recruitment right, a big if, they could find top quality squad players in January, easily, the market is now open to all 20.

If there's one thing Leicester know how to do it's scout. They got Vardy and Mahrez for under £2m combined! Kante is a top player in the making and he only cost 5m, the only decent money signing that hasn't worked at all is Kramaric and at the point they signed him every man and his dog wanted him.

[Pistolero]

Vardy would fall apart as soon as he went to a top club. Massive pressure to perform straight away, having teams still fancy themselves against you is a big deal, go to a big side and the bus gets parked... Let's see what you have to offer. It's Lallana, Fellaini, Young, Benteke etc. all over again.

nah

[C]

Recent history shows that occurs very often.

Villa were around 7ish points ahead of you around March time for the fight for 4th. Think it was 2009. Spurs were 7 or 8 points ahead of you in 2012 for the fight for 4th. Around March too. 2014 - we were trailing yourselves by around 9 points in February. I'm sure there are half a dozen more examples from the last 10 seasons. Southampton were around 8 points ahead of ourselves and Spurs around January last season, and finished below both.

6-9 point gaps have been shown to be cut down in an instant with only 2 or 3 months of the season left.

Leicester are currently around 8-14 points ahead of the CL chasing pack. We're in December! That gap could very likely be in the 6-9 range come January, February or March and by that time Leicester could find themselves in very different form.

no records show being top at christmas, tends to mean you will win the title.

[killer-heels]

Isnt it that no team has had this number of points in the PL era and not made top four? Be great for the PL if they do make it.

[CraigDS]

Isnt it that no team has had this number of points in the PL era and not made top four? Be great for the PL if they do make it.

Not sure that stats really means anything though, as surely it's the gap between clubs in the chase for top 4 which matters, and the gap they have currently has been closed plenty of times in the past after this many (and much more) games.

[killer-heels]

Not sure that stats really means anything though, as surely it's the gap between clubs in the chase for top 4 which matters, and the gap they have currently has been closed plenty of times in the past after this many (and much more) games.

The thing with Leicester though is that the whole of 2015 has been pretty much an amazing run for them so its not just been a 2-3 month burst of form. Would be good to see what their calendar table looks like. Not saying they will make top four but they have shown more longevity in their form compared to many of the previous sides who have briefly threatened to make top four.

[Solomon Grundy]

These have been great for the premier league this year. If we can't make top four I hope they do. It'll be a tough game against them on boxing day and one I'm looking forward to. Hopefully we'll get a win as well.

[Gerrard#1]

Isnt it that no team has had this number of points in the PL era and not made top four? Be great for the PL if they do make it.

[CraigDS]

^its an absolutely useless stat.

[killer-heels]

^its an absolutely useless stat.

The assumption is that the sides that normally get that many points are the better sides/bigger clubs hence are more likely to sustain it than smaller clubs sides so in that case yeah, its a pointless stat.

What Leicester have going for them though is much more longevity if you look at the whole of 2015.

This is something i found apologies if its not accurate. Shows Leicester having clocked 66 points over 36 games.

http://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/premier-league/jahrestabelle/wettbewerb/GB1/saison_id/2015#ath

[WelshMike]

I'm stunned by what they've achieved so far this season; it's unbelievable. A really phenomenal effort from Ranieri and all the players. You don't get to be top of the league at Christmas without being a very capable team indeed.

Lots said they'd struggle with their difficult run, but they've come through Chelsea, Man Utd and Everton with 7 points. Still got us, City and Spurs to come in the next few weeks though.

Having said that, they've only lost 1 league game all season and are the only team to have scored in every game. 37 goals in 17 games is pretty impressive!

I'm a little bit perplexed at any talk of the title at this stage. We're only 17 games in with another 21 to go, and this is before they've had any real injuries, a couple of damaging results, the Christmas period, the start of the FA Cup, the winter transfer window, etc. It would be one of sport's biggest ever achievements for them to do it, so it's almost silly to talk about it until we're 25-28 games in.

If they're still leading the pack at that stage, I'll consider it. But at the moment, I'm not convinced that they'll finish top four. It would be remarkable if they did -- and they're definitely in with a chance, especially given the inconsistency and poor quality from ourselves, Man Utd, Chelsea, etc. -- but there's still a long way to go. I could see them finishing 5th, but they continue to surprise me every week.

[Shite Name]

No serious risk of that, for now. If we're in March with Leicester top and fit, you may want to relocate

I think I might have to relocate if they do win the league, does anyone know if Klopp was at the Everton v Leicester game, I hope he was to be honest

[Gerrard#1]

^its an absolutely useless stat.

So you consider history useless in the process of predicting the future?

I don't expect them to challenge for the title but they're a serious contender for fourth with Chelsea's current situation.

Leicester: 2.23 points per game

Spurs: 1.7 points per game

United: 1.7 points per game

Us 1.5 points per game

Chelsea: 1.06 points per game

We can't beat Palace or West Brom at home, United are on a downward spiral and Chelsea are basically out of the race. Even with a dip in form, winning a 6 pointer against United, Us or Spurs might be enough to see Leicester over the line come May. If Mahrez and Vardy stay healthy fourth looks like a realistic outcome for them. A loss against Leicester would put us 14-17 points behind them with only 19 games left. That's a huge gap to close considering our poor home form this season.

[Pradan]

None of those times was a team top of the table and missed out on top 4.

I wasn't old enough to remember this vividly but from what i faintly remember Villa were top during Christmas in either 98 or 99, and missed out on top 4. So there's one case there.

In 2014 you made a gap on us but both finished top 4, same with us and Spurs when chelsea won CL.

My point is gaps that large can be cut. Whether that's one or two sides. Besides you're going back to examples of yourselves and Spurs making the top 4. Clubs with the resources and all round quality to be fighting for the top 4 every season. Leicester are a small club with limited resources. The possibilty of them giving in to more than one side is far more likely.

In all likelihood when we're into January/February - ourselves, Spurs and United will at worst be 6-9 points behind them and as history shows gaps that big get chased down quite often. The possibility of 2 out of those 3 cutting the gap is more than likely. They've got two players who are playing at an elite level. A few other decent players but look past that, the majority of that side is just middling quality. If as expected Vardy & Mahrez drop off from this ridiculous level they're in, than the rest of the side should be exposed for what they are.

I mean that's what i expect. If they both continue as they are, then fair play they would have deserved the top 4.