How Harry Maguire could be the catalyst for change at Leicester City

[Blue and white]

No one really expected Leicester to reach anywhere near their title winning heights last season. Having lost star man N’Golo Kante to eventual champions Chelsea, the Foxes were overworked with the Champions League and didn’t have the squad to keep pace with a Premier League campaign at the same time.

The Foxes’ success in the 2015-16 season was built on their remarkable defensive setup and their ability to hit sides on the counter, having spent most of the game without the ball. In fact, according to Squawka, Claudio Ranieri’s side averaged just 47% possession across their title winning season.

With Kante covering their back line, and narrow full-backs creating an almost impenetrable wall, held together by Robert Huth and captain Wes Morgan in the middle, whether they had the ball or not didn’t really matter, few were going to get through. Losing Kante though, along with the pressure of playing as champions and thus having to take the game to opponents, seriously harmed that back line.

 

The stats tell all. In the 15/16 season, with Kante at the King Power, the title winners conceded just 36 goals all season, while the incumbent champions Chelsea, having a crisis of their own, let slip 53 goals across the campaign. Move forward a season and with the French international now plying his trade in west London, the Foxes conceded almost double (63) and the Blues, even less than Leicester did a year before to regain the title with 33.

 

With an unprecedented summer of spending having passed before the Foxes opened their season with a thrilling 4-3 loss to Arsenal on Friday night it is hard to define what will amount as success for Craig Shakespeare’s side this season. A top ten finish at least is surely the aim, especially when you consider that leading online bookmakers price them 10/11 to do so.

What is certain, however, if they are to improve on last season is that things need to change at the back, which is where Harry Maguire comes in. With messrs Huth and Morgan having been exposed last season, some younger blood was needed.

 

Maguire, who has hopes of a place with England in a World Cup year, showed outstading form for Hull City last term, taking the armband at times, and impressed many despite their relegation from the top flight.

His strength, vision and ability on the ball, as well as composure for just a 24-year-old, is remarkable and will bring a new lease of life to the back four at the King Power. While his addition will be a refreshing one, he hasn’t had long to settle in. With Huth’s injury thrusting him straight into the deep end against the Gunners at The Emirates.

 

With the pressure of making his full debut the summer signing was, regardless of the four goals conceded, highly impressive. It was a couple of naïve mistakes that cost Shakespeare’s side in north London, however, in Maguire fans were able to see a bright future ahead.

 

Not only did he show a touch of class and composure on the ball at the back, the towering centre-half can also chip in on the front foot. Whether that be carrying the ball through a midfield to create chances for those ahead of him, or even get into the final third himself, or threatening from set pieces as he did to set up Shinji Okazaki at the weekend.

 

Of course, Shakespeare has other issues aside from his defence, however, if he can get Maguire taking up a key leader’s role in that back four over the coming years then his £17m price tag will have looked a bargain.

[Guest Kopfkino]

Needs to be 'How Harry Maguire and *another CB* could be the catalyst for change at Leicester City'. As good as Maguire is, we need to build a partnership for him to thrive. We're already too heavily reliant on him.

[m4DD0gg]

39 minutes ago, KingGTF said:

Needs to be 'How Harry Maguire and *another CB* could be the catalyst for change at Leicester City'. As good as Maguire is, we need to build a partnership for him to thrive. We're already too heavily reliant on him.

Exactly, needs another investment in that area and by the looks of things there isnt going to be one.

[RoboFox]

Christ on a bike. He's played two competitive games. TWO.

 

He looked relatively solid against Arsenal, but City still conceded four. The next game was against a side odds-on to finish rock-bottom of the table.

 

Let's not rest too much on his shoulders just yet, eh?

[lifted*fox]

He has looked very capable playing some nice football along with some solid defending - plus an assist for Okazaki (IIRC) and a goal for himself. 

 

I really wish we had someone younger and more athletic available to play alongside him now though. I don't buy all the 'can't change 2 CBs at once' rubbish. You can if they're good enough. 

[foxoffderby]

very impressive so far, lets see how he gets on in the next 2 or 3

[Kitchandro]

A bit of an ignorant write up.

 

Our success wasn't built on an impenetrable back line, in fact we were conceding loads of goals for the first 10 games and were still winning games because we were attacking with such verve. The defence came afterwards.

 

'Taking the game to the opposition' is a bit of a loose term. You can still do that with little possession. If it's simply meant that we tried to get more possession last season well we didn't have to that just because we were champions, the mistake was thinking we did.

 

I think too much is made of the 'counter attacking' thing. There's no doubt it was a strength, but it wasn't our game plan. Counter attacking implies the other teams attacked first, but I don't consider it attack when they didn't get near our box. The plan was always to win the ball high up the pitch, so not really counter attacking. 

 

There's a few misconceptions about our title win that just won't die.