Leicester City Discussion

[Spike]

5 minutes ago, Stan said:

Not yet considering nothing is certain mathematically... 

No but five months ago and this wouldn’t be a possibility 

[Stan]

27 minutes ago, Spike said:

No but five months ago and this wouldn’t be a possibility 

How do you mean? 

I think any kind of new manager bounce (if it happens) will serve us in good stead. With the games we have this month I hope we can get away from the bottom 3. Just hope we get this appointment right. 

[Spike]

1 minute ago, Stan said:

How do you mean? 

I think any kind of new manager bounce (if it happens) will serve us in good stead. With the games we have this month I hope we can get away from the bottom 3. Just hope we get this appointment right. 

Leicester wouldn’t be a relegation team if they had sacked Rodgers five months ago

[CaaC (John)+]

6 minutes ago, Stan said:

How do you mean? 

I think any kind of new manager bounce (if it happens) will serve us in good stead. With the games we have this month I hope we can get away from the bottom 3. Just hope we get this appointment right. 

Who would you like as the next manager, Stan?

[Stan]

28 minutes ago, Spike said:

Leicester wouldn’t be a relegation team if they had sacked Rodgers five months ago

True. This move should have been done a while back. In fact, several key moments it could have been made. 

Losing heavily to Forest in FA Cup last season. 

Losing to Forest away this season. 

Losing to Southampton last month. 

Generally the way we've played for approx 12-18 months has shown we've been on a downward trajectory. 

28 minutes ago, CaaC (John) said:

Who would you like as the next manager, Stan?

Someone that just gives players belief to play. And the ability to win ugly and give some backbone to the team. 

[Dan+]

1 hour ago, Spike said:

Just saw this as well. Too little, too late for Lester

Don't agree. There's loads to play for including another 5 games against the rest of the cluster of teams down the bottom. If Rodgers was right about anything it's that it was in our own hands. We did it before and we can do it again.

I've literally in this decision gone from about 90% sure we're dropping to about 80% sure we're not.

But it's time for those players and fans to stand up. There's nowhere to hide anymore.

[Stan]

Benitez apparently linked. 

How uninspiring. 

[Honey Honey]

Might be a glitch in the sofa score app but did a Roy Hodgson Crystal Palace really just have 31 shots against you 

How did Leicester board let it go this far 

[Stan]

53 minutes ago, Honey Honey said:

Might be a glitch in the sofa score app but did a Roy Hodgson Crystal Palace really just have 31 shots against you 

How did Leicester board let it go this far 

Embarrassing, isn't it? 20 shots I think in the first half and it was somehow 0-0 at HT  

[MUFC]

 

[Happy Blue]

Commiserations @Stan @Dan you nearly did it. is this the strongest team to ever be relegated from the Prem? you have some top players, no way should Forest and the like be finishing above you, where's it all gone wrong this season and will you bounce straight back?

Edited May 28, 2023 by Happy Blue

[Stan]

15 hours ago, Happy Blue said:

Commiserations @Stan @Dan you nearly did it. is this the strongest team to ever be relegated from the Prem? you have some top players, no way should Forest and the like be finishing above you, where's it all gone wrong this season and will you bounce straight back?

Potentially.

I wouldn't say I know enough about several other teams over the years to have been relegated that were the strongest. But Villa & Newcastle perhaps, or maybe some Fulham or West Brom teams that have dropped? Not sure.

 

I think I've answered where it's gone wrong before, but in summary:

• Rodgers being given free reign to sign some absolute cart-horses
• Letting Schmeichel go without finding an adequate replacement. Not just for his goalkeeping ability, but his leadership, character and personality. We lost a big player there. It's almost like he knew the shitshow was about to occur but I don't begrudge him a move to continue playing in Europe at all. 
• Rodgers being given too long to stay in his position despite our disgraceful drop towards the bottom of the table. Could/should have gone in the summer, after 7 games, after the World Cup, before the March international break. 
• Too many players being far too comfortable, not really having the commitment to the club, which leads to under-performing and just not being bothered about the fate of the club while they secure a move elsewhere
• Our owner not being ruthless enough, being ill-advised by an arsehole of a Director of Football (Jon Rudkin). It's why I've mentioned that things off the pitch are just as bad as they have been on it. It all filters down in some way, shape or form. And that's what has happened here. When the general doesn't know what's going on or know how to lead, how can the proverbial soldiers know what to do or take charge? 

[Happy Blue]

2 hours ago, Stan said:

Potentially.

I wouldn't say I know enough about several other teams over the years to have been relegated that were the strongest. But Villa & Newcastle perhaps, or maybe some Fulham or West Brom teams that have dropped? Not sure.

 

I think I've answered where it's gone wrong before, but in summary:

• Rodgers being given free reign to sign some absolute cart-horses
• Letting Schmeichel go without finding an adequate replacement. Not just for his goalkeeping ability, but his leadership, character and personality. We lost a big player there. It's almost like he knew the shitshow was about to occur but I don't begrudge him a move to continue playing in Europe at all. 
• Rodgers being given too long to stay in his position despite our disgraceful drop towards the bottom of the table. Could/should have gone in the summer, after 7 games, after the World Cup, before the March international break. 
• Too many players being far too comfortable, not really having the commitment to the club, which leads to under-performing and just not being bothered about the fate of the club while they secure a move elsewhere
• Our owner not being ruthless enough, being ill-advised by an arsehole of a Director of Football (Jon Rudkin). It's why I've mentioned that things off the pitch are just as bad as they have been on it. It all filters down in some way, shape or form. And that's what has happened here. When the general doesn't know what's going on or know how to lead, how can the proverbial soldiers know what to do or take charge? 

Which players do you think will stay and leave? ..Maddison & Barnes etc must be targets for premier league teams 

[Dan+]

On 28/05/2023 at 20:09, Happy Blue said:

Commiserations @Stan @Dan you nearly did it. is this the strongest team to ever be relegated from the Prem? you have some top players, no way should Forest and the like be finishing above you, where's it all gone wrong this season and will you bounce straight back?

It's hard to pinpoint one exact thing that did it but what I think is just completely daft is how so many fans could see it while the club either couldn't, or pretended they couldn't.

I've not posted loads about it really because I think it's just the end result of everything I've been saying for a good 18 months.

18 months ago I sensed we were club in decline. Not irrecoverable decline, but decline nontheless. But to recover that decline you have to actually tackle it and do something about it. We have spent practically that entire period just putting our fingers in our ears, blah blah blah-ing every warning sign and hoping things would get better. Despite a few upturns, they never did. Whatever good results happened, we were always 2/3 games from another meltdown.

I think the seeds of a team that could crumble were planted as early as even 2019 and 2020.

You could perceive the 2019/20 one of two ways. You can say that this is a good season for Leicester, finishing 5th is higher than all bar around 3 finishes in our history. You can also say it was an almighty squander from the position we were in. The clubs attitude every time is to just focus on the positive and pretend there is no drawback. This leads to a reduction in standards and ultimately living in a delusional fantasy land.

There were so many red flags this season it was unreal. I'd been pining for the Rodgers sacking for so long that when it finally arrived it was so farcical that I didn't even feel that usual relief. Some relief, granted, but I knew we weren't necessarily out of the mire this time. So it proved.

The clubs lack of preparedness for something that was so abundantly obviously needed for so long is a major, major red flag. The owners statement this week was a load more on the defensive. Has tried to deflect away from the wrongdoings of this season by pointing out some abusive comments (which I don't actually condone if true), no apologies, and so far, no further action other than reportedly instructing an inquest into what went wrong - from the very people that are most to blame. It's just fucking mental.

I'm over the relegation because I've been expecting it - I'm already worried we're going to fuck up the response. It took an extraordinary level of incompetence to get this squad relegated. Yet here we are.

The only thing that gives me any solace is that Leicester City are pound for pound the most chaotic club in the country and I really do believe that. I think our case is very heavy. I mean we've won the league with the lowest ever wage bill and gone down with the highest in the space of 7 years.

[nudge]

@Stan have you signed Suphanat?

[Dan+]

9 minutes ago, nudge said:

@Stan have you signed Suphanat?

We have. I called it the day I saw Thailand had an FM wonderkid. Fingers crossed he's as good in real life as on that.

[nudge]

4 minutes ago, Dan said:

We have. I called it the day I saw Thailand had an FM wonderkid. Fingers crossed he's as good in real life as on that.

He's definitely Thailand's and potentially the whole region's biggest prospect, I love to watch him play. Physicality is the main potential issue, but I recall that he along with his brother and another Thai talent were all training at Leicester for a while a few years back, so I hope that's not going to be a worry! 

Hopefully he breaks into the first team fast, will keep an eye on you from now on...

[Dan+]

7 minutes ago, nudge said:

He's definitely Thailand's and potentially the whole region's biggest prospect, I love to watch him play. Physicality is the main potential issue, but I recall that he along with his brother and another Thai talent were all training at Leicester for a while a few years back, so I hope that's not going to be a worry! 

Hopefully he breaks into the first team fast, will keep an eye on you from now on...

You can see from the furore at the airport that he's clearly considered a big thing over there and that this move is a bigger deal than probably a lot of our fans perceive it to be. I'd say there is a good chance he ends up out on loan at Leuven - but then there's a case that we're not even in a stronger league than them this coming season. He's a complete wildcard to me. We've had other Thai players train here in the past and we did sign one, albeit he never really played and he, like about 90% of this club seemingly did his ACL, and I believe has just left us this summer.

I'm good with it. It's a completely risk-free signing with potential upside. The sort of deal we probably should've been doing more of if anything. I think the fact we're now in the Championship will allow us to take a couple more of these sorts of gambles that we wouldn't have really been able to as a Premier League club.

Worth mentioning they have just relaxed the rules on foreign players in this country again slightly, think you can name now either 2 or 4 players in your squad that bypass the rules.

[Stan]

24 minutes ago, nudge said:

@Stan have you signed Suphanat?

Yeah as Dan says.

I look forward to seeing how he develops over here! 

[Stan]

Apparently we're close to signing Stephy Mavididi for 6m Euros. 

A bargain in my opinion, makes it a low-risk signing if it wasn't to work out. 

[Dan+]

Yeah I'm quite on board with that signing. He's scored at a rate of 1 in 3 from the wing for a bang average French side over three seasons. That's a smart buy on the face of it.

Quite liking our incomings on the whole but it sounds like the usual process for sales - we need to just take the hit on some of these players now. Getting their wages off is the priority. The amount of times it sounds like we've cost a sale on the basis of a couple of million difference in fee, to then pay that out within 6 months in the players wages while they make about 4 appearances is infuriating.

[Whiskey]

On 26/06/2023 at 22:48, nudge said:

@Stan have you signed Suphanat?

Couldn't hack it for me and FC Porto. 

Nope.

[Dan+]

39 minutes ago, Whiskey said:

Couldn't hack it for me and FC Porto. 

Nope.

Nor us by the sounds of it as he seems to have been sent straight to Leuven

[Stan]

As if our pre-season prep couldn't have been more badly planned, our game with Spurs in Thailand is likely to be called off due to monsoon rains and waterlogged pitch.

All the more reason not to have signed up to this shit. Or at least pulled out when we were relegated and realised we'd have been returning less than a week before the start of the season.

[Dave]

Yeah, just a classic case of owners working against the best interests of the people on the field in the interest of money.