Here is my take (for what it's worth):
Kasper- very steady game, couple of good saves and always felt confident he would command his box. Kicking much improved on recent weeks, stil not at its best yet tho. 7.5
Da laet- poor pass leading to their goal and caught out a few times but some good runs forward and important challenges. Think still more to come from him but needs to cut out mistakes. 6.5
Konchesky- caught up feild a couple of times but offers a great outlet and also put in a good few challenges. Very steady second half. 7
Morgan- just a commanding performance, dominant and leads the back line well. Player if the season so far! 8
St ledger- looks a lot more comfortable along side Morgan than he ever did with mills or Bamba. Didn't put a foot wrong and won some very good headers. 7.5
D.W- ran the midfield from the start! Passing a lot better than weds, seem to get stuck in more and create things. Some very good tackle and interceptions on the edge of our box too. 8
James- does the tidying up, but doesn't offer a lot more, very ample replacement for king, but still not enough to warrant a starting place for me.
6.5
Marshall-some good moments, but looks slightly of pace at the minute, almost seems jealous of knockaert! Average game by his standards
6
Knockaert- didn't put a foot wrong today. CreAtive, final delivery good, passionate, worked for the team, cleared one of the line....any other day would have been man of the match
9
Vardy- unlucky with two cleared of the line, maybe should have done better with the other two. Always worked hard for the team and seems to work well with nugent. Tireless.
7
Nugent- 3 goals, left foot right foot header. Perfect hattrick.
Worked his socks off and always had a smile on his face.
9.5
King- steadied the game down- like to see him start next week.
7
Dyer-useful sub, good pass for the 3rd
6.5
Waghorn- put himself about, good break for the third. Did nothing amazing but didn't put a foot wrong
6.5
Today's ratings
posted on 23/9/12
Trish,
Good summary. I could put up my own ratings, but as they would differ from yours so little it's not really worth it.
Nugent was man of the match with his hat-trick. He's proven that work rate and quality do not have to be interchangeable.
The decision to play Knockaert in behind the front players seems like a master-stroke and may have been the difference today (and 2nd half v Burnley) and, as you say, would have been MOM on any other day.
Wes Morgan had one of his worst games this season for me. He only managed to be good, rather than absolutely excellent like he has been in some of the other games.
A few moans (or should I say points of concern):
Marshall: the lad has quality, but his performances have dipped in the last couple of games. I hope that him and Knockaert can play in the same side.
Vardy: His touch and running off the ball is much better than a conference player, but I have concerns about his finishing. He looks like he needs to be more instinctive as you don't get that extra time at this level. The mutterings for Beckford will not go away unless he starts taking some of those chances.
Defence: There is still something about it that makes you feel uncomfortable. Konchesky has not quite reached the heights of last season. De-Laet sometimes goes missing and I'm still not totally convinced about SSL. I hope it's just teething problems, but I suspect that Whitbread will feature at some time in the future.
posted on 23/9/12
I noticed when knockaert took a free kick in the 2nd half which was saved, Marshall ran off shaking his head, it almost seems as though he feels like he isn't the main man anymore- he needs to get over this and quickly!
Vardy-I agree about his finishing, but I think he will Improve on this, he has the Instinct to be in the right position so I'm sure the finishing will come soon.
Defense- I agree about konchesky not hitting the heights, but he stil does more than enough IMO to warrant a place in the team. I suggested to my friend, bring in whitbread and push st ledger out to the right, not ideal but another option to tighten up the defense.
And as you say, knockaert has been a master stroke in his new position, an also proves that Pearson isn't a cr@p tactician as a few have previously mentioned.
All in all a good day at the office
posted on 23/9/12
what's the point ! did I win the shirt or not?
posted on 23/9/12
Nope. Sold for £75
posted on 24/9/12
Schmeichel: 7 - A couple of decent saves, distribution questionable at times.
De Laet: 7 - Unexciting but generally solid performance.
Morgan: 7 - Not one of his better days but gets an extra point from me for some crowd-pleasing charges and effective working of the offside trap.
St. Ledger: 7 - Did what was asked of him, hopefully starting to find his feet in the season.
Konchesky: 7 - Very good technique and running but was AWOL for the goal.
James: 7 - A quiet but effective job doing the dirty work.
Drinkwater: 8 - Influential performance, controlled the pace of the game and subtly good in the tackle as well.
Marshall: 6 - Struggling for form, but will hopefully find it in a winning team.
Knockaert: 9 - Not a perfect performance but very, very effective. Hull couldn't handle him and his crosses were consistently dangerous. (Not forgetting a disciplined and vital header off the line.)
Vardy: 6 - Good engine but missed two great chances, particularly the second.
Nugent: 9 - MOM, lively and you can't overlook a match-winning perfect hat trick.
King: 7 - Solid job, particularly in defence.
Waghorn & Dyer: 6 - Did what was needed, both with a big contribution to the third goal, effectively ending the match.
Overall, a very strong performance all round, an entertaining day and a decent refereeing performance too. (I much prefer a ref who keeps his whistle and cards in his pocket.)
posted on 24/9/12
look at the lcfc photographs of the players during the game to see how much it meant to them.
posted on 24/9/12
Yes Nev, you are right - great photos, suggesting a team which is comfortable together.
posted on 24/9/12
theres a lot of pictures in that gallery with so much scope for a caption competition. Love the one of NP with an evil grim on his face with Bruce shouting in the background.