It may have been defensive lapses that cost Leicester City defeat at Swansea, inflating their relegation worries, but at least as significant is the fact that they haven’t scored a league goal this year, a run that now stretches to 610 minutes. It is a problem with many sources, but the bare fact is that Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez, the two forwards whose brilliance was instrumental in them winning the title, simply are not firing.
Claudio Ranieri made clear last week he had spoken to both players, trying to coax out of them the magic that elevated last season. This being Ranieri, he was clear the conversations had not been dressing-downs, emphasising that Mahrez is trying and that Vardy works very hard for the team, but their diminished contribution – Vardy has scored just five goals this season as opposed to 24 last; Mahrez three compared with 17 – is symptomatic of the more general problems at the club.
Related: Swansea pile further pressure on relegation-threatened Leicester
Continue reading...