Ruud van Nistelrooy's 'massive loss' points to January transfer amid relief over inevitable deal
It says plenty about the current expectations around Leicester City that a 3-1 defeat to Liverpool was a pleasing result.
Nobody inside the club will admit as such but to lose to Arne Slot’s side by the same margin as Manchester City and Real Madrid, and by a smaller margin than Manchester United, Tottenham and Bayer Leverkusen is at least a relief. The fans, fearing the worst after seeing their side thumped 4-0 by Newcastle and 3-0 by Wolves in their previous two matches, were broadly happy with the scoreline.
If City do finish in the relegation zone this season, the post-mortem will not judge this defeat to be a fatal blow. In fact, if City stay up, it may be seen as a moment of slight hope on which to build. Because there was a gameplan that worked at least well enough to have City in the lead for 40 minutes.
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Sitting in, packing the box and then rushing forward, the idea is to cede possession in less dangerous areas so as to limit the space for the opposition in the most threatening positions before breaking with enough efficiency and pace to create big chances from rare forays forward. So how did they get on?
In attack, City didn’t have a shot after the ninth minute. That sounds concerning, but they did still create three big chances overall. The first was Jordan Ayew’s goal, the second was the over-hit through ball from Stephy Mavididi to Patson Daka, and the third was the cross to the Zambian that he mis-hit.
In defence, they limited Liverpool to an expected goals tally of 2.0. For their level of possession that’s not a terribly high total. In fact, it’s less than City have conceded eight other fixtures this term.
If City had performed slightly better in each department, sprinkled with a bit of luck, then they’d have had a decent chance of coming away with a result. That’s promising, because they will get another opportunity to test the tactic on Sunday.
Despite Man City’s struggles, City will likely play the same way as they did at Liverpool. Against an out-of-form opponent, they can at least have a little hope of ending the year on a high.
Stolarczyk brings immediate confidence – and relief over inevitable deal
Jakub Stolarczyk’s performance will also bring optimism to the King Power Stadium. Making his Premier League debut and his first senior appearance in nearly nine months, he wasn’t fazed.
The debacle over Danny Ward – Ruud van Nistelrooy’s selection of him, the goalkeeper’s performance, and the fans’ reaction – was the low point of the season. A change between the sticks was unavoidable.
Stolarczyk made a difference in more ways than one. He looked assured and made a handful of good saves. The best of the bunch was in the opening five minutes when he denied Mo Salah but then reacted quickly to dive at the feet of Curtis Jones and scramble the ball away.
For the three goals he conceded, two were curled right into the corner and one was slammed in from point-blank range. There was little he could do about them.
But beyond that, he looked confident at corners, coming off his line to punch away, something even Mads Hermansen doesn’t regularly do. With his feet, he was calm and clipped some nice passes out to James Justin in the early stages.
But the biggest difference was how his presence affected the defence. The major individual mistakes seen against Wolves were cut out. That may be a coincidence, but it’s not inconceivable that Stolarczyk inspired enough confidence to settle the back four in front of him, leading to fewer errors.
In the immediate future, Stolarczyk’s performance means City can give Hermansen the time to truly get over his groin injury. There’s no need to rush him back and risk problems later down the line.
In the long term, when Hermansen is sold in the summer – a transfer that sadly feels inevitable no matter whether City stay up or not – then the club have a goalkeeper who can immediately take his place, allowing the money to be spent elsewhere. Stolarczyk looks ready to be a number one.
Van Nistelrooy deserves time to prove why he has faith in Daka
Nearly every time a striker other than Jamie Vardy plays for City, there are calls for a new man to be signed in the next transfer window. But it would be harsh to make such a suggestion after Patson Daka’s performance.
Perhaps his goal off the bench against West Ham at the start of the month gave the impression he was fit, sharp and ready to fire in the goals. When he then miscues for a big chance, there’s disappointment.
But this was his first competitive City start since Plymouth away in April. He’s spent most of this season recovering from a serious injury. He can be forgiven for being rusty.
At Liverpool, he chased hard and his link-up play was decent, even if there were a few moves where he took too long to get the ball under control. And his movement at the top end was good. He escaped markers in the first half and should have been found by Mavididi for a clear-cut chance. In the second period, while he messed up his finish, he did get the run on Virgil van Dijk.
Van Nistelrooy has publicly shown faith in Daka. He wants to make it work for the Zambian. Both manager and player need more time together to prove they can.
City's 'massive loss' points to January transfer priority
City’s task was made more difficult at Anfield by an injury list that has grown to a point of damaging their survival hopes. With Ricardo Pereira, Wilfred Ndidi and Abdul Fatawu joining Hermansen and Vardy on the sidelines, City were missing five players who likely would be starters.
There has been no need for van Nistelrooy to discuss Fatawu since his arrival. The winger tore his ACL before the new manager was appointed, and he won’t get to use him this season.
But in his post-match press conference, the Dutchman mentioned Fatawu by name for the first time. He said: “With Fatawu out, with the cruciate, just a week before I started, that was a big blow. It’s a massive loss for this time.”
That can be taken as a hint as to what van Nistelrooy may want in January. Speaking last week, he was coy on the window, suggesting he’s still not finished his assessment of the squad and the positions that require strengthening. But maybe this is an admission that a winger is wanted.
City have plenty of players for those three positions behind Vardy, so much so that Facundo Buonanotte has only started one of van Nistelrooy’s five games. But in terms of out-and-out wingers, he only has two in Mavididi and Kasey McAteer, and neither offer the sheer speed that Fatawu does in possession.
A player like Fatawu, who carries the ball at lightning pace, would have been perfect for a game like that at Liverpool. Mavididi, Buonanotte and Bilal El Khannouss are technically very good in dribbling forward and around players, but none can streak up the pitch like Fatawu.
Van Nistelrooy is right. He is a “massive loss”. It feels like a January loan for a speed merchant that plays wide would be a sensible piece of business to do, particularly if City are going to play to this gameplan more often this season.
Two possible reactions to bottom-three position
While City have never been out of the relegation battle this season, they haven’t actually been in the relegation zone before now. Seeing their name in the bottom three will likely trigger one of two responses.
Maybe there will be panic. A fall back to the Championship feels a lot more real when a team is 18th or below. But equally, maybe this will spark determination.
This shouldn’t be a shock to the system. It’s where City were expected to be this term. Van Nistelrooy was almost surprised they hadn’t at some point been in the bottom three.
But for the first time this campaign, City are now in a position where they cannot rely on other clubs’ results to keep their heads above the water. They have to do it themselves. They have to take matters into their own hands and prove they’re good enough to stay up, not just slightly less poor than three other sides.
