3 reasons why Leicester could break into the top 4 in 2019/20
While the majority of news stories regarding the Premier League this season have surrounded the potential signings and exits at Manchester United, Frank Lampard taking over at Chelsea and Tottenham finally spending money on new talent, one side has quietly flown under the radar but has also been strengthening their squad at the same time.
Brendan Rodgers’ Leicester City side – who famously won the Premier League in a massive upset in 2015/16 – finished in 9th place last season but under Rodgers, who took charge in late February, the Foxes hit a rich vein of form, winning 6 of their last 11 games including a big win over Arsenal. And they haven’t stayed still this summer either, breaking their record transfer fee twice to bring in Ayoze Perez and Youri Tielemans.
With the traditional top teams in the Premier League seemingly in flux, could this be the season that sees Leicester break into the Champions League again? Quite possibly – and here are 3 reasons why it might happen.
#1 They have a remarkably strong squad
Leicester might not have the strength in depth of a team like Manchester City or Liverpool, but there’s definitely an argument to be made that their first XI could compete with any other side in the Premier League – including all of the so-called ‘Big Six’. Veteran goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel and a central defensive partnership of Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans form a powerful back-line, and in Ben Chilwell and Ricardo Pereira, the Foxes also have two of the league’s better full-backs.
A midfield that can call upon the talents of Youri Tielemans, Wilfred Ndidi, James Maddison, Demarai Gray and Hamza Choudhury is nothing to sneeze at either, and upfront they have one of the most formidable strikers in the league in Jamie Vardy – and they now have Ayoze Perez to back him up, too.
Assuming Rodgers isn’t hit with an injury crisis at any point, there’s no reason why Leicester’s first XI would fear any side in the Premier League. Sure, injuries could definitely test the quality of the squad, but that’s also assuming that the Foxes’ super-rich Thai owners don’t spend any more money this summer.
Essentially, the only thing that could harm Leicester right now is if they sell a top player like Maguire or Maddison, who have been linked with the likes of the Manchester sides and Tottenham – but all of their top players are under long contracts and don’t seem like the types to attempt to force a transfer. With talent like this on their books, if any side can break the grip of power that the ‘Big Six’ currently hold, it’s Leicester.