Leicester City pair go beyond their billing in major boost to Ruud van Nistelrooy
The importance of Wilfred Ndidi’s return to fitness was made clear in Leicester City’s defeat to Arsenal.
The Nigerian, having developed his attacking game in a more advanced role under Enzo Maresca last season, is a box-to-box midfielder and then some.
It’s not just that he’s shuttling between the two penalty areas as players described as box-to-box typically do. He’s striding into the penalty areas and making an impact there too.
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In the first half, both of City’s best chances fell to Ndidi, who forced David Raya into a save with a volley from the edge of the box, and then headed wide a golden opportunity just before the interval.
After the break, when the game became stretched, there were two moments where he made important interventions just inside City’s own penalty area. If he’d not been there to mop up, Arsenal would have been in one-on-one.
But what was particularly pleasing was that Boubakary Soumare was doing the same. Ndidi’s first-half volley came from Soumare surging into the box and clipping in a cross. At the very end of the game, the Frenchman had the energy to pick up the ball in his own box and dribble to safety.
Having played nine lots of 90 minutes in a row in the Premier League, Soumare is on his longest run of league starts at City, and that consistency is helping him.
The lapses of concentration that marred his game in the past have not been so frequent and he’s been able to make a difference in the middle of the pitch and at both ends.
“He’s a great player and person to work with,” manager Ruud van Nistelrooy said last week. “He’s professional. He loves the game. He loves to compete. He looks to invest in his own development.
“He’s performing really well. Of course he can always learn and do better, but that’s also the process we’re in with him and every player. The way he’s performing has been very positive for this team.”
When pushed, van Nistelrooy would not reveal what specifically he was working on with Soumare, but the hopes would be that is on the attacking side of the game.
In 81 City appearances, he’s not scored and only has one assist, and even that was a flick-on for a Harvey Barnes stunner at Leeds.
But there have been signs of improvement. And it’s great news for City that they have two midfielders who have the stamina to make a difference in both boxes for the full 90 minutes.
It will require good organisation so that City don’t get hit on the break in the moments where both attack the box, but you would not put it past the pair to sprint back and recover anyway.
If City can keep both of them fit and firing for the remainder of the season, their growing ability to impact both attack and defence feels like it will be significant in the club picking up points.
