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Giving Rodgers too much sway over transfers in Summer 2021 was the original sin but that only happens because under Top's ownership we've been highly reliant on managers to drive strategy and the world class scouting and recruitment built up under Vichai was gradually dismantled after 2018. That's the thread that links Rodgers spending £60m on rubbish, failing to move Tielemans and Soyuncu on and losing them for free, Cooper's obsession with Premier League experience leading to inflated transfer fees for Skipp and Ayew, and the failure to sign a striker in Summer 2025. Clubs of our size live or die on their recruitment strategy and ours has been atrocious for half a decade. That's on the ownership.

Not sure which is the most depressing scenario. 1. He went out on the piss last night. 2. He didn’t go out on the piss last night and turned in that performance anyway.

Always nice to beat Derby. And good to stop the run of poor results. But man alive we are honkingly mid table.

Wonder if he’s worth a go at 3. He’s played there before - think he got his double century against Pakistan in that position? Solves a problem position and potentially allows someone like Hameed or Emilio Gay to come in at the top of the order. I like the look of Bethell but not sure he’s a natural number 3 yet.

Think there’s a case to be made for 2025 being the worst calendar year in my time supporting Leicester (since the early 1990s). The only year that comes anywhere close is 2002 for the triple whammy of relegation, leaving Filbert Street and administration. But even with all that, things were going pretty well on the pitch by the end of that year. We’ve just had so little to cheer this year, and off the field the club is in a dire state.

My dog has had the odd accident over the years but mercifully never on the hob.

Yeah, it's too much to ask for another Graeme Swann, who was pretty much the perfect English spinner. But we do need someone who can get some turn, hold up an end and chip in with useful runs batting at 8 or 9. Rehan looks the best candidate for now (although perhaps his brother will surpass him in time).

Think we can start writing the test obituaries for some of this squad. Crawley and Pope are surely done after this series. The jury is out on Smith, particularly with James Rew breathing down his back. Duckett has been disappointing but probably has enough credit in the bank. The Number 3 is a perennial problem position but Bethell will get a go now you'd think. Archer aside the pace bowling has been pretty poor and we need to get a proper spinner in who can preferably bat a bit. I hope Stokes doesn't throw in the towel as captain - I'd love to see him regain the Ashes in 2027. For the first test against New Zealand in June I'd like to see something like: Hameed Duckett Bethell Root Brook Stokes J Rew Rehan Atkinson Potts Archer

The way he walks on and talks about that song, you’d think he’d written it himself.

Skipp, Skipp, Skipp, Skipp, Skipp, Skipp, Skipp, Skipp, Skipp, Skipp, Skipp, Skipp Skippy Skippy Skipp Skipp

Don’t want to go up this season and realistically with the points deduction we won’t be in the running. With that in mind the only thing I really care about this season is the young players getting more experience - as long as we don’t go down. No Winks and Faes left on the bench tonight is another positive. Not at all convinced by the manager as his in game management has been pretty poor. But would rather see where we are at the end of the season than hit panic stations just as he’s finally started to trust the academy boys again.

We stan our goth DM king.

Doubt this will happen but there’s a case for Aluko at right back in this one. Ricardo can’t play two in a week and Hamza has been pretty woeful in that position in most of the games he’s played. That aside I’d swap out Ayew for Daka and keep the rest of the team the same.

That was a Friday night. We’ve not won a mid week game this season.

Mowbray = too woke. Big Sam = not woke enough.

Been a while since we appointed an older manager isn't it? Ranieri must have been the last one over 55 or so? Reckon we need some grizzled, chain-smoking, leather-faced unit to sort these losers out. Cifuentes, Cooper et al have been too keen to be mates with the players. I want someone with no time for any more friends because he's got 18 grandchildren. I want someone who doesn't know what a TikTok is and insists on players wearing a jacket to dinner.

He must be regretting returning to certified bad eggs like Faes and Winks after the first few games when they were in the bomb squad. Would we really be any worse off in terms of points and position if our regular starting XI had looked something like this? Jakub Ricardo Nelson Okolo Aluko JJ Skipp Mavididi Alves/Page Fatawu Daka

Second season not a patch on the first in my opinion.

Looking back at our mid season sackings under the last 15 years. Cooper - sacked November - didn't improve, relegated Rodgers - sacked April - didn't improve, relegated Puel - sacked February - improved Shakespeare - sacked October - improved short-term, more debatable long-term Ranieri - sacked February - improved short-term, stayed up, Shakespeare sacked early the next season Sven - sacked October - didn't improve that season really, but long-term under Pearson it worked out So I'd say only Rodgers was clearly sacked too late. And only the sacking of Puel and replacement by Rodgers definitively worked out in both the short-term and long-term. Would say sacking Sven and bringing Nige back was obviously a move that worked out in the end, but it took a while. And we're under quite different ownership now.

Think I've explained my thinking in the rest of my post.

Personally think unless we look in genuine danger of relegation Cifuentes gets until the end of the season. I'm not opposed to this on the basis that: 1. Mid season changes in manager haven't really worked out for us in recent years. 2. We're not going to spend much in January so it will be the same squad. 3. We're unlikely to get automatic promotion with a points deduction looming. 4. I'm not sure I want us to get promoted with the squad in the state that it is. 5. I want to see us build for the future. If Cifuentes continues to play Nelson, Aluko, Monga and bring in a couple of other academy players through the season he'll have my support even if we're not competing at the top of the league. I'm not at all convinced by him so far but would rather make a clear judgement at the end of the season.

Think by the letter of the law Aluko's second yellow was justified, but agree the referee could have used his discretion to give a final warning. Similarly, Fatawu went down too easily before their 2nd but the ref had given a couple of very similar fouls for them just moments before. I'm not usually a ref basher and we may well have lost this game anyway but he and his assistants had a really poor game on Tuesday.

First goal is an incredible mistake from the linesman really. If you can't spot a player half a yard offside from a set piece then what are you even doing in that job.