'He helps the defence make less errors'published at 15:06 GMT 17 December 2024
15:06 GMT 17 December 2024
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Former Leicester striker Steve Howard spoke to the When You're Smiling podcast about Mads Hermansen's injury against Newcastle: "He is a vital part of the team. With the chances [we concede], you rely on your keeper. He's got to be on top form every game.
"With Danny Ward coming in, I think we'll be alright - but it's not his first-choice keeper. At the minute, we are relying too much on the keeper and It's a huge problem."
Leicester fan Tom Foyster added: "I think it would be massive [if it was a long term injury]. He's key to the way we play with possession football and I think he is a really good keeper across the board. I think it's that level of confidence that the defence have in him that stop them from making so many errors.
"It seems like we don't have that much confidence in some of the reserve keepers. It feeds this nervousness and we the create more mistakes than we would."
'The cheque book must be opened in January'published at 12:33 GMT 17 December 2024
12:33 GMT 17 December 2024
Kate Blakemore Fan writer
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Well, the honeymoon period ended with a mere whimper this week as Ruud van Nistelrooy suffered the first defeat of his tenure.
Leicester were up against it going into the game with the midfield trio of Boubakary Soumare, Wilfred Ndidi and Harry Winks all missing though injury or suspension and, if our owners needed any convincing that the cheque book must be opened in January, then this was the performance that sealed it.
Replacements in Oliver Skipp and Hamza Choudhury fell well below the level required and the loss through injury of keeper Mads Hermansen at half-time saw a rusty Danny Ward bleed three goals in his opening 15 minutes.
Strength in depth is a huge problem as we head into the Christmas fixtures and it is something that has needed addressing for a while. Many argued that we had a Premier League squad in the Championship last season, but the reality is there is a lack of the quality needed to survive this unforgiving league.
PSR will of course be on the minds of the owners, with the EFL noose waiting should we get relegated. But many fans believe the approach should be to stay up, whatever it costs, to ensure survival and we will deal with PSR issues down the line.
Our season will not be defined by a loss at St James' Park, but it may well be defined by the point salvaged against Brighton last week, the win over West Ham or even the result of this Sunday's huge home fixture against Wolves.
The timing of the sacking of Gary O'Neil could not have been worse, but we can only hope that we have most of our starting XI back and that any potential new manager bounce for Wolves is delayed.
It will be a spectacle for sure, as the two worst defensive teams in the league go toe to toe.
Michael: Much better and Dan Burn was awesome! Sandro Tonali, Jacob Murphy, Lewis Hall and Bruno Guimaraes all got involved. Alexander Isak could have had a hat-trick but it is good to see him getting back to his best! Much-needed win for an under-pressure Eddie Howe.
Richard: I'm not sure if I expected us to win because the players would be out to support the manager after a poor show at Brentford or because losing was just unthinkable! Failing to win would have just been awful and thankfully we got the good NUFC and not the 'other' one. When we play well, we can give anyone a game. Consistency is the key. And well done Murph for proving the doubters wrong.
Johnny: A fantastic win and much better performance than others of late. Leicester were poor and there will be much harder games to come, but across the midfield our team seemed a lot more balanced than they have looked recently. If we'd been more clinical it could have been as comprehensive as six or seven nil. Hall and Tonali were my standouts.
Adam: Finally a result and a performance. Hopefully they can replicate this regularly and really kick on this season. There's so much disruption in the league like City floundering. A good run over the holiday period could lift us really high and set us up for a exciting finale.
Leicester fans:
Karl: Awful. Made a bang-average side look like Brazil 1970. Clutching at straws because we were abysmal - but Guimaraes shouldn't have been on the pitch. The referee was as bad as we were.
Ian: I felt at half-time that we were still in the game and could have challenged for at least a point in the second half. Then I switched back as the game had restarted, saw Danny Ward in goal, and knew we were in for a humiliation. I never want to see him in a Leicester shirt again. Ever. The amount of sheer bad luck this club has endured over the past four years or so is astonishing.
Carl: We are where we are. When you lose players like Riyad Mahrez, N'Golo Kante, Ben Chilwell, Danny Drinkwater, Harvey Barnes, Harry Maguire, Wesley Fofana, James Maddison, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Kasper Schmeichel and then face long-term injuries to Abdul Fatawu and Ricardo Pereira, and only ever replace with £5-15 million players there is no surprise that we are struggling near the bottom of the table. It's going to be a long season!
Richard: The truth was hammered home here - no real team co-ordination developed at all. Also it is surely time to find another goalkeeper in place of Ward. Nobody wanted him in the summer but he cannot be allowed between the sticks in the Premier League. Get someone new or look to develop from the academy and let Ward's contact just run out.
Does Van Nistelrooy need to change his approach away from home?published at 10:00 GMT 16 December 2024
10:00 GMT 16 December 2024
On the latest episode of the When You're Smiling podcast, Former Leicester striker Matty Fryatt suggested that the Foxes may need to change their approach in some away matches: "I think they approached it in the way that Ruud van Nistelrooy wants his teams to go about it. They were on the front foot and went after Newcastle. There was not a lot in it in the first 20 minutes or so.
"By that manner, it took a lot out of Leicester's players. Sometimes with all the energy and intensity, you switch off when the ball goes out of play. That might be a part of it. Once the game wore on, it took everything out of Leicester from what they tried in the first 20 minutes. Newcastle took full advantage of the space that was afforded to them.
"It might be that they [should] sit in away from home and look to play on the counter, especially against the likes of Newcastle and teams of that Ilk."
Gossip: Foxes want reunion with Dewsbury-Hallpublished at 07:44 GMT 16 December 2024
07:44 GMT 16 December 2024
Leicester City are planning to bring midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall back to the club, having sold him to Chelsea in the summer. (Football Insider), external
Newcastle 4-0 Leicester: Reality check for new Foxes boss Van Nistelrooypublished at 18:00 GMT 14 December 2024
18:00 GMT 14 December 2024
Matthew Howarth BBC Sport journalist
Image source, Getty Images
After back-to-back home games against West Ham and Brighton, this was arguably Ruud Van Nistelrooy's biggest test of his brief Leicester reign so far – but the visitors fell short in every department at St James' Park.
The Dutchman was not helped by the absence of the injured Wilfred Ndidi and the suspended Boubakary Soumare, with Hamza Choudhury drafted into midfield for his first Premier League start in more than two and a half years.
He may, however, feel aggrieved at referee Thomas Bramall's decision not to book Guimaraes for going down too easily under Jannik Vestergaard's first-half challenge in the area, with the Brazilian then cautioned just moments later for a tackle on Stephy Mavididi.
Before half-time substitute stopper Ward had even touched the ball, Guimaraes had added to Jacob Murphy's first-half strike to make it 2-0.
Isak added a third three minutes later, with Murphy completing the scoring on the hour mark.
Whether Guimaraes should have been on the pitch or not, the manner of Leicester's second-half collapse will alarm Van Nistelrooy, who must now prepare his side for a crucial home game against fellow strugglers Wolves next weekend.
'Wasn't the best of afternoons for us'published at 17:54 GMT 14 December 2024
17:54 GMT 14 December 2024
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Leicester City boss Ruud van Nistelrooy has been speaking to Sky Sports following today's loss: "It was a big challenge to come here and if you give away the goals from set-pieces, we are not doing ourselves a favour. We could improve the structure in which we want to play with the ball. We are in a process of two weeks together. We had two positive results, but this one wasn't the best of afternoons for us.
"Against top teams in the league and we help them in their way with a couple of set-pieces in their favour and it was going to be a hard afternoon.
"I think it's development of the team as well. We need to learn form these games and how Newcastle outplayed us in counter-attacks. They were clever in the block and set-pieces. It is a long season. We move on, reflect and get better form this."
On their next match against Wolves: "Every game for us is huge. Everything has to be right to get results in the Premier League, and so will be the next one as well.
Sutton's predictions: Newcastle v Leicesterpublished at 11:08 GMT 14 December 2024
11:08 GMT 14 December 2024
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Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, against a variety of guests.
For week 16 he takes on darts star Stephen Bunting, who is a Liverpool fan.
Bunting, who is ranked eighth in the Professional Darts Championship (PDC) order of merit, takes on Alan Soutar or Kai Gotthardt in the second round of the PDC World Championship, which starts at London's Alexandra Palace on Sunday.
Sutton's prediction: 3-0
I did not like the way Leicester treated Steve Cooper but they have definitely had a bounce since appointing Ruud van Nistelrooy, who has made the start he desired.
It is fair to say that Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has not had the season he wanted so far, but any team who can beat Arsenal and draw with Liverpool must have something about them.
Howe's side have been consistently inconsistent, but they are not far off becoming the team he wants them to be.
I am expecting them to click here, and I actually think this will be quite straightforward for them.
Bunting's prediction: 2-1
I am going with Newcastle, but it's going to be close. 2-1.
Van Nistelrooy on 'talented' Skipp, injuries and good formpublished at 15:04 GMT 12 December 2024
15:04 GMT 12 December 2024
Leicester City boss Ruud van Nistelrooy has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game at Newcastle United (kick-off 15:00 GMT).
Here are the key lines from his news conference:
Van Nistelrooy confirmed Wilfred Ndidi will not be available for Saturday because of a hamstring injury and Harry Winks is also "doubtful" as he has only recently returned to partial team training.
On the impact of midfielder Ollie Skipp: "[He's] a very good age. He's a young talented player with a bit of experience already. A very good team player who helped the team against Brighton. He's very dynamic, good on the ball and can track back. He's a very good person to have around because we have injuries and suspensions so he's happy to fill in."
On four points from his opening two matches in charge: "It's been great to use the first two games to look at what we're trying to achieve. We took that into training to further develop, how we attack and progress up the pitch and we've had a good week. Tomorrow we still have training to work on more things."
On the mood in the camp before travelling to Newcastle: "The progress over the past two games – the results, the confidence – I want to take that into this game. In the end, the progress of the individual and the team will give you the most chance of winning points."
On facing Newcastle: "We look at the individual qualities they have and the potential they can have. We have to prepare for that. It's a great squad with good options from the bench. We'll have to be spot on to get a result on Saturday."
On whether there will be any transfer business in January: "It's a continuous process. I like how organised the club is in preparing different opportunities, but you can't start thinking about them. I'm first of all looking at our current squad and in the under-21s, [seeing] who's available and assessing them like Henry Cartwright."
'A masterstroke' - how O'Neill brought Cottee back from cup final heartachepublished at 15:35 GMT 11 December 2024
15:35 GMT 11 December 2024
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Former Leicester City striker Tony Cottee says Martin O'Neill's man-management was a masterstroke in inspiring the Foxes to League Cup glory.
Speaking on the Sacked in the Morning podcast, Cottee labelled his Leicester years as the "peak" in his career but admitted the cup final defeat by Tottenham in 1999 left him certain he would not win silverware at Filbert Street.
That was, until, O'Neill intervened.
"It was just a poor final," Cottee said of the Spurs victory. "[Tottenham full-back] Justin Edinburgh got sent off and all we really had to do was just hang on to go into extra-time. With the extra man, I was pretty certain we would have gone on and won the game.
"Us being us, we just switched off and Tottenham broke, scored in the 89th minute or something stupid, and we just couldn't recover.
"When the final whistle went, I just felt sorry for myself. I had played in four English finals and I had lost all four of them - and I just lost it.
"I just remember putting my hands on my head and crying my eyes out. I had a few of the players come up to me, but I didn't want to talk to them because you're in your moment, crying on the pitch at Wembley.
"Then, all of a sudden, I had this arm on my shoulder. I recognised the voice immediately and it was Martin O'Neill."
Known as one of the game's greatest motivators, O'Neill knew what to say to turn Cottee's fortunes around.
"He went: 'Tony, don't worry. We'll be back next year'. I looked at him and I went: 'Gaffer, I'm 33 years of age. It's so hard to win a trophy. We ain't coming back next year'. He went: 'I promise you that we will be back here next year'," Cottee said.
"True to his word, the following year we got back there, somehow or other.
"We played against Tranmere. It wasn't the most glamorous of finals, obviously, but we won. We beat them 2-1 and Matt Elliott scored two goals.
"At the end of the game, to walk up the steps as a winner in my fifth final, to put the medal on, to just lift the League Cup and think: 'I've won something - it has taken me 17 years, but I've won something'...
"Again, that was a masterstroke from O'Neill to just give me the encouragement to go again the following season."
'Foxes never quit? Well, they don't now'published at 12:27 GMT 10 December 2024
12:27 GMT 10 December 2024
Chris Forryan Fan writer
Image source, Getty Images
And on the eighth day, Ruud van Nistelrooy did not rest but instead continued to raise the dead.
OK, let's not get too excited. Ruud is not God, yet. But what he has done in eight days is nothing short of a miracle.
He has taken a team who, against Brentford in particular, looked like a pub team on a Sunday morning after a heavy session the night before. Although, that could be being unfair to pub sides around the country.
First up was West Ham on Tuesday night. You could argue, quite rightly, that West Ham were the better team. They ended up with an expected goals of 3.0, but that was also our goal tally against their one goal.
The busiest man during that game was the groundsman, who had to pick up all the limbs we left out on the pitch. It was a true game of grit and determination, something which I had not seen in a while - in two days we had become Ruud van Nistelrooy's Avengers.
But one swallow does not make a summer and next we faced Brighton which on paper have been a much harder game.
Coming off a loss to Fulham, with a point to prove and a European challenge to reignite, I think we all would have probably taken a point at kick-off.
Well we got that point - and we also got another performance of similar character.
Yes, we came back from two goals down to beat Southampton but they are no Brighton and they are bottom for a reason. Even at 2-0 down, I was pleased with the performance at King Power Stadium.
Let's see what Van Nistelrooy makes of the team in the upcoming games, and what moves he might make in the January transfer window.
'Vardy will keep playing until he gets into that top 10'published at 11:08 GMT 10 December 2024
11:08 GMT 10 December 2024
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Former Leicester City winger Matt Piper believes Jamie Vardy will reach the 150 Premier League goals club this season, after the 37-year-old's strike against Brighton brought him within eight goals of matching Michael Owen's record.
Speaking on BBC Radio Leicester's When You're Smiling podcast, Piper said: "The only thing that would stop him doing it this season is maybe injury. He is getting older, so he will pick up little niggles here and there, but we have just got to hope that he has a season clean from injury.
"If he does, I think he will get there. Let's go one step further: could he get into the Premier League's all-time top 10 goalscorers this season? I think why not, especially now we have Ruud [van Nistelrooy] as manager!
"Number 10 is Jermain Defoe on 162 goals, so Vardy probably won't get there this season but he will keep playing until he gets into that top 10.
"I'm not saying that in jest, I'm being serious. But, if he doesn't get there [in his career], it doesn't matter.
"The level Jamie Vardy operates at - only starting at top-flight level when he was 27 years old, scoring the amount of goals he has, becoming the player he has become, Enzo Maresca is saying he is better than Wayne Rooney and Harry Kane - is magnificent.
"It would just be amazing if he could be in that top 10. His career isn't over yet - I don't think it's anywhere near finished yet - so if he could push himself into that top 10 it would be much deserved for the player he has been over the years."
