Lakshay Khurana
English Premier League has taken a very unexpected turn this season with astonishing results and standings. A team which was struggling to make their place in the league has now dominated the league winning over the best of teams.
Claudio Ranieri has led Leicester City to heights with his methods and making the best of whatever team and the financial budget he had. Leicester City is favourite to win the title this year, sitting on top of the table. They have been marvelous and can teach all the biggies like Manchester United a thing or two about winning.
Let’s look at some points which Manchester United can learn from Leicester City.
1. Consistent line-up
Leicester City has shown a consistency in their playing XI and substitutes. No matter where they play and against whom they play, the selection of the team is almost the same every time. Whereas, Van Gaal has tried tons of formation and has played every player he could, even from the academy. The players change in every match and even their roles very frequently, which has led to players not settling well with whatever responsibility they have in the team.United can try and inherit this tactic of consistent selection and see if it can work out well for them too.
2. Strong Midfield
Ranieri has provided his team with a very strong and highly work rate midfield. N’Golo Kante and Danny Drinkwater being one of the most regulars in the centre-midfield have been as important as Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez in Leicester’s winning spree. They both have been staggering. Their defensive and attacking capabilities have helped the team in both aspects and made it look easy. The work rate provided by them is massive, unlike the centre midfielders of Manchester United. There’s no doubt that Schweinsteiger, Schneiderlin, Carrick or Fellaini are any less of a player, but they really need to step-up a notch in providing the team with more and more support in both attack and defense.
3. Pace is relevant not only in FIFA game but in real life too.
Leicester City have shown a tremendous display at front with their counter attacks. What makes it breathtaking apart from the through-passes and finishing is the pace.
Vardy, Mahrez, and Okazaki are the few names who sprint off within a fraction of a second to take the chance. Jamie Vardy in particular has taken a massive advantage of his pace to beat defenders despite his comparatively shorter height.
Manchester United’s squad lacks that pace. Anthony Martial and Memphis Depay are the players which come to mind when choosing the ones who can run extraordinarily fast. But they still don’t make the deal as their teammates are not fast enough or should I say, not really fast at all to keep up with them if they chose to threaten the opposition with a quick attack.
Leicester City has players who can run really fast and others who can at least, keep up with them to make the attacking an overall success with a burst of speed.
United can fancy playing their faster player to see if they can outsmart defenders by leaving them trailing.
