The dream finally came true on 2nd May, 2016 as the incredible journey had finally ended. Chelsea drew 2-2 with Tottenham Hotspurs, and thus handed Leicester City their first league title in their 132 years of existence. The Foxes came from becoming relegation contenders to league winners in the span of just one year, and their story has been nothing short of a fairytale. When Claudio Ranieri was appointed as their manager last summer, his sole objective was to stay up in the league. However, he and his team went on to defy all logic, week after week, and finally clinched the trophy yesterday. Here are the 3 lessons which we can learn from the incredible Leicester team:
1. Develop a sound scouting system
The Leicester team didn’t cost a fortune, their best players Vardy and Mahrez cost less than 500,000 pounds, but have 38 goals in between them. Okazaki and N’golo Kante are the only two players who cost them a few millions, but even they were rejects from bigger teams. Danny Simpson and Danny Drinkwater are Man Utd academy graduates, while Robert Huth and Christian Fuchs also arrived as free agents. Leicester City have once again showed the world that there is no substitution for an organized scouting system, which will help the first team get quality players at dirt-cheap prices and give the team a big boost.
2. Appoint a tactically sound manager
Claudio Ranieri, or the Tinkerman, as he is popularly known, was sacked by Chelsea in 2004 as he was deemed not good enough by them. Ironically, he will receive his Guard Of Honour at the Stamford Bridge next week when his team will officially crowned Champions. The Italian has been a delight to watch all season, and the way he managed his paper-thin squad and managed to get the best out of them. Players like Kante, Morgan, Fuchs, Mahrez, Vardy, Ulloa, who were all anonymous quantities in the 2014-15 season, are now on everybody’s lips. It takes a lot of skill and tactical acumen to galvanise a team in the manner Ranieri did, and his feat will probably remain unmatched forever.
3. The passion and commitment
It’s true that the Leicester team didn’t have to travel across Europe or face it’s punishing conditions, however, they did have to start off as underdogs in the league, under dogs who took everyone by surprise and didn’t stop until they reached their goal. The squad consisted of players who played out of their skin, played for nothing but the crest and were backed by a vociferous home crowd who finally got what they truly deserved. Leicester’a story is one of passion, commitment, hard work, organization and discipline, and will forever be told as one of the greatest sporting stories of all time.
