My view also ... Chelsea probably don't have anybody in their broader squad that wouldn't cost close to £20m ... some very much more ... similarly United and City ... we've had to cuy our cloth a bit differently - although it could be argued that we might be moving closer to those models, albeit the 'economy' version ...
You don't need to spend silly money on players who can retain possession. Bournemouth are better at it than us, as are West Brom and they don't have big money players and are above us in the table. Our desire to hit the front man so quickly (and inaccurately) is our biggest downfall this season because the opposition know our gameplan and we give possession away far too easily and don't have Kante to win it back. This Ndidi has some expectations to live up to if he comes.
You don't ... but you won't win the league with the Bournemouth model ... Albrighton and Drinky give the ball away frequently ... but when they get it right it has tended to result in a goalscoring opprtunity ... Ranieri made the best of what he inherited there is no question ... he may have ideas about changing that going forward ..
I was only using Bournemouth as an example of a 'lower class' (no disrespect intended) example of what Chelsea, Arsenal and Man City do, ie the lone striker and support from midfield and wingbacks. And that model will win the league this season. Don't get me wrong, if Ndidi comes and makes as big an impact as Kante did and we start winning games with the same sort of low possession rate as last season then the style of play will be justified, but I think we have to have an alternative approach in matches when the quick ball forward doesn't work.
Genk’s Wilfred Ndidi, who can play at defensive midfield or centre-back, could fill the void left by N’Golo Kante and he’s confirmed he’s played his last game for the Belgian side. please log in to view this image Follow please log in to view this image Kristof Terreur ✔ @HLNinEngeland Wilfred Ndidi has (finally) confirmed that he's joining Leicester on the 1st of January: "This was my last game for Genk." #LCFC please log in to view this image 8:42 PM - 27 Dec 2016 149 149 Retweets 118 118 likes The 20-year-old is expected to cost around £15m and will join Leicester City this weekend in the New Year, with the Nigerian talent looking set to make an impression in the Premier League. The Guardian reports Leicester have applied for a work permit for the African talent, who will be looking to make an impression in upcoming fixtures against Middlesbrough, Everton and Chelsea, with the clash against the Toffees being in the FA Cup.
£15m rising to £18m with add ons has been agreed pending the WP https://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/dec/27/wilfred-ndidi-leicester-city-transfer Have been reading really good things about the lad and hopefully he will do the job for us https://www.theguardian.com/football/2017/jan/01/wilfred-ndidi-leicester-city-genk-transfer
Now Official Wilfred Ndidi: Leicester City Set To Sign Nigeria Midfielder From KRC Genk Posted: Tue 03 Jan 2017 Author: Leicester City image: http://www.lcfc.com/cms_images/player/ndidi-4-3280-3499860_613x460.jpg please log in to view this image Leicester City can today confirm that an agreement has been reached with KRC Genk for the permanent transfer of Wilfred Ndidi. - Leicester City agree deal with KRC Genk for Wilfred Ndidi - Nigeria international midfielder to sign five-and-a-half-year deal upon granting of work permit - The 20-year-old midfielder helped Genk reach the UEFA Europa League knockout stages Leicester City can today confirm that an agreement has been reached with KRC Genk for the permanent transfer of Wilfred Ndidi. The Nigerian international midfielder, 20, has agreed personal terms, undergone a medical and will sign a contract to June 2022 once a work permit has officially been granted. He will wear City’s no.25 shirt. The Foxes beat off considerable competition to secure Ndidi’s signature – the tall, combative central midfielder having won a host of admirers across Europe for his performances both in the Belgian Pro League and in the UEFA Europa League, where he helped Genk progress to this season’s knockout stages as Group F winners. Wilfred makes the move to the Premier League after two years in Belgian football, having joined Genk on his 18th birthday following a successful trial with the club’s academy. Originally spotted playing for Nathaniel Boys in an open trial in the Nigerian city of Lagos, he started out as a central defender, before adapting superbly to a defensive midfield role. At international level, Ndidi represented Nigeria at Under-17 and Under-20 level, before earning his first senior call-up in October 2015. He has played twice alongside City forward Ahmed Musa for the Super Eagles this season, including an appearance against an Algeria team containing Riyad Mahrez and Islam Slimani. Ndidi is expected to complete the formalities of his move to Leicester City later this week. Read more at http://www.lcfc.com/news/article/20...rom-krc-genk-3499850.aspx#J5tEWevGgVyqDSDZ.99
Not to burst your bubble but the last one was called Andrej Kramaric and that didn't turn out so well...
Amartey and Gray were considered good prospects but not among Europes best - Bart however... I will amend my message: Not to burst your bubble but the last one was called Bartosz Kapustka and that didn't turn out so well...
This is a strange one ... the lad looked very promising during his cameo appearances at the Euros ... just saying.
He's a kid playing first team international football. He's clearly got something about him. I wouldn't have fancied moving to a different county when I was 19 to work, time is needed.
Forget Kante: Five key areas Leicester new signing, Wilfred Ndidi, is superior Posted by: Toby Prince January 4, 2017 in Opinion, Premier League, Slider Articles 0 Comments Leicester City has had a herculean task trying to defend their Premier League title this season. The Foxes who stunned everyone last term, have been a shadow of themselves and might just be contented with retaining their Premier League status instead of a trophy at the end of this campaign. Claudio Ranieri’s team have collected an abysmal 21 points after 20 games – the worst return by a league champion in history. Those woeful numbers could be partly due to the departure of influential midfielder, N’Golo Kante, who joined Chelsea last summer. The energetic Frenchman made the most interceptions (156) and tackles (175) in the league last season to add to constantly shielding the Foxes’ back-four. In his absence, Leicester has looked more like rabbits caught in headlights, as their defence has been brutally exposed – conceding 31 goals thus far. The trio of Daniel Amartey, Andy King and Nampalys Mendy have all been unable to fill the void left by the Frenchman. please log in to view this image Leicester announced the signing of Wilfred Ndidi from Genk on Tuesday However, in new signing, Wilfred Ndidi, Ranieri might have found a suitable replacement or even an upgrade to the 25-year-old. Here are five amazing reasons why. 1 – He’s just 20 please log in to view this image Ndidi has played for Nigeria at all levels At 20, Wilfred Ndidi obviously has his best days ahead of him. The Nigerian youngster is five years younger than Kante who will be nearing the twilight of his career exactly when his successor is approaching the end of his five-and-a-half year deal. But age hasn’t necessarily limited Ndidi’s productivity. In his two full seasons at Genk, Ndidi featured over 60 times which is something rare for a player who only clocked 20 in December. 2 – Versatility Kante, as we all know, is a classical example of an orthodox holding midfielder. Ndidi, on the other hand, is a more flexible player who could slot into a number of positions across midfield and defence. He was handed his debut by ex-Rangers coach, Alex McLeish, who used the Nigerian at left-back against Charleroi on 31 January 2015. He was subsequently tested in central defence but displayed a wide range of passing and shooting needed for the role. With McLeish leaving the club, Ndidi was then redeployed by new coach, Peter Maes, in midfield and has continued in that role ever since. 3 – European experience Leicester City’s priority this campaign is definitely the Champions League and Ndidi could just be that missing piece of the jigsaw. In his six Europa League games, the midfielder averaged a whopping seven tackles per game – which is well ahead of his closest rival on 5.7 – along with 4.8 interceptions per match. In fact, Ndidi alone made 56 tackles and interceptions in the competition – which was the most by any player in the group stage. Also with a WhoScored.com rating of 8.19 for his performances, the Nigerian is ranked overall fourth out of all the players to have featured in the group stage. His predecessor, Kante, is yet to take part in any European club competition of any kind. 4 – He’s got eyes for goal too please log in to view this image Ndidi has a better goal return than Kante Aside from his defensive duties, Ndidi is gradually becoming synonymous for his contributions in attack. The Nigerian netted twice in the Europa League over both legs against Spanish giants, Atletico Club. Ndidi also found the net on seven other occasions for the Blue-White – one of which was a ferocious volley against Club Brugge in the Belgian playoff last season. The strike was adjudged to be travelling at a speed of over 111 km/hr and was named the league’s Goal of the Season. This evidently is an upgrade to Kante who notched just one goal in 37 appearances for the Foxes and one thus far for Chelsea. 5 – Intimidating Physical presence Standing at 6ft 2in, Ndidi has a considerable height advantage on the former Foxes fan favourite and has utilised his frame to full effect. This is because, in all of the Europa League’s group stage, only one midfielder won more aerial duels than the Nigerian. Ndidi will definitely offer more during set pieces than his predecessor who was a little above 5ft6in. Also, his longer legs could see the young lad cover more distance as well as engage in more tackles than the Frenchman.
He played for the development squad the other night and certainly had a prominent role according to he match report ...
