After just one year away, Leicester City are back in the Premier League.
By Sam McGuire
The Foxes claimed top spot in the Championship to return to the English top-flight at the first time of asking. However, there’s been a lot of change at the King Power Stadium this summer.
What happened last season?
Under new manager Enzo Maresca, Leicester City got off to a flyer in the Championship, winning 13 of their opening 14 matches.
The Foxes then lost back-to-back games before going on a 10-match unbeaten run. At one stage, it felt like a matter of when and not if Maresca’s men would guarantee promotion.
Yet their form in 2024 made the final few months of the season a little more interesting. The Championship title should’ve been a formality for the Foxes but they needed two wins in their final three games to claim top spot over Ipswich by a single point.
And this was with the Tractor Boys drawing three of their final five games. Had they turned one of those into a win, the Leicester collapse would’ve been one for the history books.
Still, this shouldn’t take anything away from what was a positive campaign. Their 1.9 goals per 90 could only be bettered by Ipswich. They conceded the fewest number of goals on a per 90 basis (0.9). Leicester had the highest xG (85.8) and the second-lowest xG against (43.4).
Their 15 clean sheets had them ranked fourth for this metric while only Southampton could better their 62% possession in the Championship. The Foxes carved out the most chances (142) and averaged the second-highest number of passes per game (549).
And from an individual point of view, Jamie Vardy rolled back the years to finish as the club’s top scorer. The 37-year-old finished with 18 goals for the Foxes, his highest return since the 2019/20 campaign.
What has happened during the summer?
Well, Leicester lost their manager. Maresca opted to move to Stamford Bridge to try his hand as Chelsea boss. Steve Cooper, sacked by Nottingham Forest last season, was brought in to replace the Italian tactician.
The Foxes also lost Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall to Chelsea. He was one of the club’s key player last season, involving himself in 26 goals. His FotMob rating of 7.74 could not be better by anyone in the Leicester squad either. The midfielder also carved out 109 chances.
His loss will be felt.
The club have also parted ways with Kelechi Iheanacho. Though the forward never lived up to the early hype, he was still a consistent threat for the Foxes. The 27-year-old, now with Sevilla, had an Expected Goals per 90 average of 0.62 last term. Only Vardy (0.87) could surpass that figure.
Leicester have added to their squad too. Abdul Fatawu made his loan move into a permanent one. Michael Golding joined from Chelsea and could well get an opportunity in midfield this season. Caleb Okoli traded Atalanta for the King Power Stadium while Bobby De Cordova-Reid moved from Fulham on a free transfer.
What they should be aiming for next season?
Like with all of the other promoted clubs, their aim should be survival this season. Leicester have a number of game-changers but is their squad good enough to avoid a relegation battle? Does their squad possess enough of a goal threat to avoid the drop? At the time of writing this, the answer to both questions is probably no. Unless they’re active in the final few weeks of the window and they manage to bring in some quality players, this season could be a struggle for the Foxes.
Prediction: 19th
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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