Leicester City: Optimism Vs Pessimism
Imagine if there was a pub in Leicester where all City fans gathered at the end of each week to air their views on the Foxes. If this hypothetical pub was a reality, there would be two distinct groups of people present following Saturday’s 3-1 defeat at Brighton. There would be a group sat hunched over the bar staring into their half empty glasses, containing the remains of the tipple of their choice, rueing the fact that this time last week Leicester had claimed top spot and now find themselves down in third place. At the opposite end of the bar would be a group of people, probably having a game of pool with their half full glasses stood waiting for a break in play, chatting excitedly about the upcoming Capital One Cup Quarter-Final against Manchester City and the fact that the club finds itself one point behind the top two after 19 league games.
Don’t get me wrong, I can see why some people are feeling slightly pessimistic. Years of supporting Leicester City teach you to expect the worse and, occasionally, be left pleasantly surprised. It’s understandable that memories of last season’s spectacular collapse, from looking like the only way was up to only just scraping into the Play-Offs, have resurfaced following back-to-back defeats. If losing twice in a week wasn’t enough of a reason to get the pessimists worried then the lacklustre performances that accompanied the defeats will have. City have conceded five goals in the two defeats and seem to have struggled to impose themselves on their opponents for any meaningful spell in either game. They almost clawed their way back into the Brighton game after Andy King’s diving header made it 2-1 but never did enough to suggest they would go on to win the game at any point. As soon as Ashley Barnes dispatched his penalty, and second of the game, to make it 3-1 it was pretty much curtains for the boys in grey.
I have to be honest and say I would find myself sharing a drink with those around the pool table if I was a regular at this imaginary Leicester City pub. I feel that, despite the poor results and performances in the last two matches, the Blues are well placed to continue their assault on the top two. It’s not often you can lose two games and still find yourself within a point of the league leaders. Better still, our next fixture sees leaders Burnley come to King Power Stadium and a week later we travel to London to take on second placed QPR. Sandwiched in between the clashes with the top two is the Quarter-Final tie so there’s a chance that City will find themselves top again and Capital One Cup Semi-Finalists in a couple of weeks’ time. Obviously the pessimists sat at the bar might be envisaging a very different scenario but time will tell if they were right to panic so soon.
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