Leicester City - A Numbers Game

Article by Leicester City Correspondent Jonathan Smith

After eleven league matches of the 2013/14 Championship season, Nigel Pearson has used twenty-one players. Not a remarkable statistic on its own. Delve a little deeper and you’ll find that out of those twenty-one players, six have played ninety minutes or less. That leaves fifteen players who have been key to City’s successful start. Delve even deeper and you’ll find that seven players have played 900 or more minutes. Schmeichel, Morgan, Moore, De Laet, King, Drinkwater and Vardy. The consistency in team selection and results is surely not just a coincidence.

For many years, the Foxes have struggled for stability with a large turnaround in playing staff taking place each summer. The summer of 2013 was different. Zoumana Bakayogo was the only signing prior to a ball being kicked this season and interestingly is yet to play any part in a league fixture. Since then, a few more additions have been made to the squad with Arsenal youngster Ignasi Miquel, Southampton midfielder Dean Hammond, Polish international Marcin Wasilewski and experienced striker Gary Taylor-Fletcher. Having said that, the four new-boys have only played 170 league minutes between them so far which is a relatively small contribution.

Out of the seven players who have played such a large part in City’s rise to third place, the inclusion of Schmeichel and Morgan is probably unsurprising to most Leicester supporters. Morgan was a rock at the back last season and Schmeichel has been consistently good since he signed from Leeds (minus a few recent errors that have cost points). Liam Moore is more of a surprise. Having spent time on loan at Brentford last season, Moore returned to play his part in the run-in, but not many would’ve predicted he would become one of the first names on the team-sheet for this campaign. The talented England Under 21 defender has really made the centre-back position his own alongside captain Morgan. He’s seen off competition from the more experienced players within the squad resulting in Zak Whitbread going on loan to Derby to get some game time.

De Laet played a key role during his first season at the club and has continued to be a regular starter on the right side of the defence. King and Drinkwater have made the central midfield slots their own despite competition from James and Hammond. Both have been ‘marmite’ players in the past with some supporters questioning their performances and others appreciating what they bring to the team. Jamie Vardy struggled during his first season at Championship level having joined from non-league Fleetwood but he has shown encouraging signs that he is now up to the challenge. Pearson’s faith in the striker can only have helped boost his confidence in his own ability.

Hopefully the solid spine that has been formed can help City continue their fine form and push for promotion to the Premiership.

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