Before Jamie Vardy’s first-leg goal they seemed down and out but Craig Shakespeare’s side now look equipped to give their opponents a proper game
On the face of it not much has changed. In fact the Leicester team who start against Sevilla at home will probably show only one difference from the XI who lined up in Spain, with Shinji Okazaki picked ahead of Ahmed Musa. There is, however, a new manager in the home dugout and Leicester have been transformed as a result. Whether that is down to the players wanting to prove a point post‑Claudio Ranieri, or Shakespeare making one of his own with small but significant team and tactical alterations, is a matter of debate, but there is no doubt that Leicester are a totally different proposition now. Back‑to‑back wins against Liverpool and Hull City carried signs of the Leicester of old as they played at a high tempo and pressed aggressively high up the pitch, winning the first game after blowing their opponents away with their intensity and the second by showing character to come from behind. Rightly or wrongly, the players look liberated. Okazaki’s return has given the team greater balance, Jamie Vardy has thrived on a much improved supply line and Riyad Mahrez’s goal against Hull will have done his confidence the world of good. Sevilla, in short, can expect a proper game this time.
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