Questions asked as Leicester lose three in a row
© Matt Beighton, Flickr |
Last night's Capital One Cup defeat to Burton
Albion rounded off a miserable seven days for Nigel Pearson's Leicester City .
After the Foxes lost two close league games to Charlton and Blackburn (and with all due respect to the Shakers), yesterday's match was supposed to be
the one to get Leicester back on track. Instead, the hosts shipped four goals to a
side two divisions below them and were subsequently booed off the pitch.
It's August.
The season is five games old. But
with former manager Ian Holloway bringing an in-form Blackpool side to the King Power Stadium this
weekend, is Saturday's fixture now a must-win game for Nigel Pearson?
It goes without saying that this isn't the start
that fans were expecting. A promising
opening day 2-0 win over East Midlands-rivals Peterborough United has since been
marred by consecutive away defeats, but such results can be overlooked by generally
positive performances and an apparent willingness and desire to battle
back. A convincing home defeat to a side
the Foxes beat 3-1 in preseason is a little harder for supporters to digest.
Nigel Pearson did make eight changes from his
starting eleven who started last Saturday's 2-1 loss at Blackburn Rovers, so
there may have been rustiness in places (especially in defence, with Sean St.
Ledger and Zak Whitbread playing for the first time this season). However, in a division where stability is
important, perhaps eight changes for one match are too many. But hindsight is a wonderful thing, and had Leicester beaten Burton Albion 2-0, fans would be
singing the manager's praises for focusing what is now a crucial match this
weekend.
This brings us to Leicester 's next match – Saturday evening's clash
with Blackpool .
This match could be a huge point in the season for both sides. The visitors are the only team to have won
their opening three fixtures, having scored ten goals and conceded just one since
the start of the Championship season.
They are the form side at this stage, and also the side to beat. Leicester, who are always tipped to succeed
in the Championship due to the financial backing of the Raksriaksorns, have
lost three in a row for the first time since Paulo Sousa was in charge. Sousa was sacked after that third loss (a 4-3
defeat at Norwich City ).
Wouldn't it just be fitting for Ian Holloway (who knows what it is like
to be sacked from Leicester City ) to come to town and put Nigel
Pearson's future here in real jeopardy?
As mentioned before, stability is the key for
success in this division. It is far too
early to tell how the rest of the season might pan out. But Leicester are notorious for its revolving door when it comes
to managers. It really shouldn't be, but
Saturday could now be a must-win game for Nigel Pearson.
I'm surprised it has come this far again at Leicester City. Has the Blackpool game really bought some time for Nigel Pearson?
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