A must win really against Burnley if we are to stay in the race for 7th and a likely place in the Europa League. I’m still concerned about how it would be prioritised next season and the affect it would have on our league results but you can’t have it both ways and it’s what squad rotation truly is for. Despite bethe fact that in recent weeks, with perhaps better team selections and performances, we could have maybe cemented 7th already (and be chasing 6th!) I’m happy, particularly considering where we were in October time, that we are still in the hunt for something at the backend of this season.
Maybe a must win for our progress next season as well. If we lose today, it isnt beyond the realms of possibility that we could finish bottom half as the players will start to wind down and I think wins will suddenly become even harder to find. 7th place finish and possible fa cup semi final to bottom half, from a morale and psychological perspective could really affect us going into the summer.
And thirdly - and this one has a caveat linked to team selection and performance to a certain extent - if we lose to Burnley and in a way that is similar to or worse than last week, I think there will be huge pressure on Puel and his tenure at Leicester - not that I personally agree with quick fire decisions on managers (most of time...), but it will start to look quite bleak.
On a positive note and in defence of Puel, certain things have gone against him that have been out of control and I appreciate that his ethos of moving towards more possession based football is likely to be, in theory, more successful during a Europa campaign season; with the additional fixtures.
But...and a big but...We have to get into Europe first and the PL and retention of things that already ‘work’ for our club should be a priority over a complete overhaul. I’m hoping recent weeks may have been a bit of a reality check for him...but sincerely hope we are in a situation where he is still here for a while because that means there has been light at the end of the tunnel and the fact is, we all want success for our club so want success for our manager.
As a postscript, I don’t see any situation in the near future, where Dyche comes into the football club because of the fact he is managing the team we are battling for 7th....either we finish 7th and we keep Puel or we dont finish 7th and we keep Puel/don’t have a chance of getting Dyche because Burnley will have finished 7th and why then, would he leave?
Cliched biggest game of the season...
posted on 14/4/18
TB - I'd expect the intital task for Puel was to get us out of trouble, not into Europe, so I'd be surprised if he got sacked after losing to Burnley (but not completely shocked given the owners propensity to panic - we'll have to agree to disagree on that one Dunge) .
Next season's target would be Europe for sure, so the question in my mind is will the owners lose faith in Claude if we finish the season poorly, and replace him with someone else to take us through the summer and in to next season?
He's stated that he's going to continue with the changed tactics so there's a fair chance we're not going to have the greatest end to the season pending arrival of players who are more comfortable on the ball. It will be interesting to see if the owners give him the chance to continue the transition.
One thing that would be in his favour next season is the fixture computer probably won't be as nasty to him as it was to Shakey.
posted on 14/4/18
A good indication of the owners expectations can be gained by looking at the latest financial report.
When released in early March, Leicester were where they are now - 8th. Despite having steered us from relegation places, Puels current performance was described as ‘satisfactory’. Not ‘good’, not ‘outstanding’.
Top 7 and Europe will be mission accomplished and - good season. 2 wins in 10, throwing away 7th and losing momentum will not be acceptable
posted on 14/4/18
“KTB it has nothing to do with us beating the top four although we needed to do that it was the top four lost to everyone in the league and could not mount a challenge leaving Spurs and later Arsenal to challenge.”
It’s strange blowing this myth out of the water to a Leicester fan, but as it was completely invalidated post league winning season, it only continues to be more so as the last season or two have passed.
Fat boy Micky Quinn and Paul Merson, along with many, many lazy pundits tried to argue the point that it was ‘just a lucky’ season and ‘other teams were just having a poor season....here’s the game, set match argument that simmers them down:
2015/16 :
Without any points against the 5 teams below us, we still finish in the CL places (even if those points accrued to the relevant team).
2016:17
‘Yeah but it was a lucky season and teams ‘had a wake up call’ in 2017’
We still finish Champions League with that points tally.
‘Yes but it was the games against the top 4 that won it for them...’
No it didn’t, keep the results against those teams in 2016/17 and transfer the other points against other teams in 2015/16 and we still finish Champions League places.
2017/18
Transfer our points from 2017/18, or if you like, transfer our points but maintain this seasons results against those ‘top teams’ - we would still be challenging for the champions league places.
Don’t get me wrong, I completely see why embarrassed pundits and unprofessional journalists want to save face, but unfortunately they can’t wipe our memories and just have to live with the fact that they looked like idiots - not for predicting Leicester would be relegated (despite us being the inform team over the last couple of months the season before) but for continuing to make excuse after excuse as they watched in frustration as we won the title and then retrospectively embarrassed themselves with lazy and cliches reasons for it, which as I said, continues to only become more obvious.
Whichever way you want to look at it, Leicester won the league because they were very good that season and that ‘very good’ would still have been good enough for Champions League places in the following season and probably this season even with the ‘top 4’ having had ‘a wake up call’ and becoming ‘much better teams again’. Statitistically there just isn’t an argument against it.
And again, if the old ‘hoof ball/counted attack’ excuse is going to be regurgated - watch the DVD.
‘That season’ isn’t what has Puel in a bit of trouble at the minute and nor will not finishing 7th or losing to Burnley (hopefully we won’t) - it will be, as is always the case, the form leading up to a game over several months.
As previously mentioned, Puel’s win ratio is worse than Shakespeare over slightly more games (and if you want to take off a few games at the beginning or end of CP’s reign to balance the ‘games played’ and make it fair, it doesn’t help his ratio).
Whilst I have preferences for types of football and tactics, at the end of the day, I simply look at them as ‘manager A, B etc’ when it comes to the welfare of my club and at the minute- there is a slight concern that our current manager is involved in a bit of decline with regard to our form. Hopefully this will just be decline in ‘ current form’ rather than a longer,significant period but it is obviously the owners’ jobs to determine where that line falls and when to be proactive as opposed to reactive.
I personally don’t think we have reached that line, but let’s not kid ourselves, Puel ‘being safe as houses’ is about as a suitable an idiom as ‘Leicester were lucky to win the league.’
posted on 14/4/18
Let’s also then get rid of this myth that pundits couldn’t face us winning the title and have tried to poo poo it ever since. It’s just a silly generalisation
I don’t think I’ve heard a single pundit say we didn’t deserve it, but let’s acknowledge the fact that it would never have happened without United, city and Chelsea being off the boil. KTFs stats back that up completely
posted on 14/4/18
Excellent post KTF.
posted on 14/4/18
KTF so we have finished in the champions league places in the last three seasons. The only stat's that matter are the table. if you think we could win the premier league without Man utd Chelsea,Manc city and Arsenal Even Spurs had the chance all under performing all season you are deluded.
It was a prefect storm and an indescribable achievement but since then we are where we would normally be.
posted on 14/4/18
You have literally ignored the majority of my post if that is a serious response.
posted on 14/4/18
So who's playing Centre half today. Maguire or Choudhury?
posted on 14/4/18
Think it will chop and change, dependent upon when Maguire goes on a dribble! But expect Harry’s starting position to be CM
posted on 14/4/18
Great post KTF1.
I always maintain we won the league for 2 reasons.
5 years of building and amazing work from our owners, Pearson and his team, and of course Ranieri. That didn’t happen overnight, it was a result of a very long process.
Secondly, because we were the best team in the league that year. I don’t care what anyone else was doing or why. We were better than them.