Off Topic The General Chat Thread.

Much nicer food in Rome

 

Even being quite a critic of Rodgers previously I’ve been feeling quite chilled about missing top 4, the cup meant a lot more. For me injuries have crippled us both last and this season. This is the biggest thing for me, they need to investigate behind the scenes and become strong in this area again. We can’t go chucking money at replacing injuries, we need to invest wisely in infrastructure like Pearson did and make the most of what we have.
On the pitch, we need to sort set pieces out, not defend with such a high line as we kept getting caught out in the run in and add some steel.
I actually reckon Bertrand on a free to help Thomas would be a good signing, solid pro and experience. Tarkowski would be good at a reduced price (contract running down) as he would be a solid experience head which is what we lack other than Evans.
Soumare looks about done, will help with this. A couple of attacking additions and we will be in a good place.

 

I have a different take on the Spurs game. There has to be a different mentality when you are playing for a so called big club and your entire season and the following season depends on that last game compared to a side who just the week before reached a previously unreached pinnacle. Throw in England's captain who was playing against his bunnies and arguably Wales greatest player against a defence featuring one centre back, who while brilliant, is only 20 and had never experienced anything like it and was supported by a 19 year old playing his first ever home game with a crowd. Our lack of squad depth and experience found us out, not a lack of game plan. We are improving and Rodgers, in my opinion, is growing the club and bridging the gap to the top three with limited finances available.

 

I'm afraid I can't agree with your assessment, NZ. I will agree that MAYBE we could have been home and dry long before that last game if we hadn't had the injuries. But, other clubs had injuries also, although the main contenders all had deeper squads. But on Sunday all that was irrelevant and in the past. When it came down to the last 20 minutes of the final game, the players had responded and got themselves in front. All this despite the injury on the day to Fofana, and the fact that one of our strikers didn't turn up and we never really tested their keeper. And don't underestimate the strength of character of Luke Thomas. He deserves our respect, not patronising. Forget what had happened over the previous 37 matches and injuries. With 20 minutes to go we were in the lead. But we had been very much under the cosh the whole match with attacks straight down the middle of the pitch. We'd had some narrow escapes and the midfield was being bypassed too easily. When Spurs introduced the pace and directness of Moura and Bale a goal looked more and more likely. Our players needed help with some fresh legs to plug the gaps, but it didn't come. Once the equaliser went in there was no way back for us.

I agree wholeheartedly that Rodgers has done wonders for the all round ability of the club but, in my opinion, his lack of tactical nous cost us a place in the Champions League next season. As I've said before, as a fan for over 60 years I much preferred to win the FA Cup, but I'm sure that most of those players, with their short term allegiance to Leicester City, would have been desperate to play top class European football next season.

 

Bucks, I'm certainly not patronizing Thomas. I think he has had an amazing season and is a real talent but at the end of the day he was part of a back four that lacked experience and know how. Lets face it we were lucky to be in front, the second pen was as soft as anything given all season and only awarded through Vardy's smarts. We were never in that game and it was more about hope than expectation. Yes we were over run in midfield but Mendy and Perez are hardly going to contain anyone are they and Ricky is far from full fitness. In fact I think we are discussing the same point just from a different angle. Mendy had to to come early due to Fofanas injury. Ricky came on to contain which Albrighton cant do and Perez to chase the game. Don't know what else Rodgers could have done, maybe bring on Hamza to race round. I have been following City since 69 so bow to your longevity and near eternal suffering so I sympathize with your frustration at getting so close, but at least our problems are good ones.

 

I'd disagree about us never being in the game ... I thought we were good value for the lead at the time of the first pen. The loss of Fofana and then the removal of Ndidi from a midfield that was, up to that point dominating the opposition's, was key to the outcome of the game - one of those was outside of Brenda's control but the other wasn't.

We had Amartey on the bench, surely that was the change for a centre back injury? ...otherwise why have him on the squad in the first place?

 

I think we see the outcome of the game very differently, NZ, and I really don't have a problem with that. We all see things in different ways, but we all want the same result at the end of the day. I just think that we never got to grips with the loss of Ndidi in midfield after the Fofana injury. I have to agree with Fosse, in as much as there were options on the bench to bolster the midfield and defence that could have got us over the line.

However, the other point you make about all our problems being good ones I think is not necessarily right. From a fans point of view we see things are improving on the pitch. We have had 2 top 5 finishes, an improved points tally and an FA Cup. For us fans that is almost unbelievable to where we were 7 years ago and most of us are happy with that. But take a look at it from Youri Tielemans point of view. He's a player at the top of his game. He's 24 and has, barring serious injury, a maximum of 7 or 8 years left to fulfil his ambitions. Do you think he came here because he's a life-long Leicester fan and will be happy with the fact the team missed out on Champions League football on the last day of the last 2 seasons but he's got an FA Cup winners medal and the team got more points than last season? I doubt it. He came here to showcase himself in the richest league in the world. If all his ambitions could be fulfilled here then that would be a bonus, but we have come up short twice and he must be asking himself whether he will ever win anything major by staying at Leicester City. I may be misjudging the lad, and I hope I am, because we need to retain players like him for the club to progress. It may be that some players like the family friendly atmosphere at the club, but if he's ambitious to win major trophies then I have to ask myself why would he stay if an offer came in from a club with better prospects.

 

Seriously, in all the time he has been here have any of us been confident he could do a job, he reminds me of Waseleski, an accident waiting to happen. Yes he scored a late winner but thats not his key role. Early in the season Ndidi played in the back four so its not like he hadn't done it before. I agree once he moved back and Mendy took his place we weren't the same. The quality on their bench far outweighed ours and i think Rodgers did the best with what he had. At the end of the day he can only put them out there, he cant control what they do.

 

So why choose us over Man Utd? I hope he signs the one year extension that is rumoured. That gives us another shot with a deeper squad to show he can achieve with us.

 

But Rodgers had to see where the danger had been coming from the whole game, and he didn't address that problem. He has to put the right players out there to get the right result. Ndidi did do well in the back four, but that wasn't where the problems stemmed from.

 

I’m not sure qualifying for the CL this season would make much of a difference to whether someone like Tielemans stays or goes. We saw that when Kante went after winning the league rather than sticking round. Maybe consistently qualifying for Europa will change that. Tbf we have massively limited the pool of clubs that we would lose players to. Remember losing Hume to Barnsley? I’m sure now that it would be limited to purely the 4 sides that finished ahead of us, even Spurs and Arsenal wouldn’t be in that conversation now!
Anyway, you couldn’t really write it, spending what, 95% odd of the last two seasons in the top 4! Technically we have managed to qualify for the EL 3 times in two seasons though as we have qualified in 2 rights this season!

 

So, full stadiums are on the horizon. How do you regulars of the KP feel about this? About time and cant wait to get back to the atmosphere and seeing the team in the flesh. You wont be going because the risk is still too high. Which is it?

 

I'll be going as usual, i'll probably still take a mask to use in the concourse, unless im having a pie and a pint.

I'd be surprised if the person i sit next to usually is there as hes an 80-odd year old man who struggled to get to his seat pre-covid. Goes with his son who will probably bring someone else instead.

Got to be upto the individual i guess, im only 38 with both jabs done so im low risk anyway, but will do what i can to not breathe on others too much.

People that probably don't feel comfortable going have likely already let their season ticket expire, either last year (the £70 retainer) or this year.

 

Good to see England in the final, but I couldn’t bring myself to cheer when we scored past Kasper.

Each to their own, but I am club before country.

 

Kasper man of the match, some great saved but England squeaked through, win win? I’m also club over country though but still pleased England got through. Can’t get anywhere near as excited as for the FA cup final though..

 

Re the stadium, I’ve not got an issue with the COVID side as a lot I think is down to personal sense. Being under 30 and doubled jabbed by August helps I guess.

I imagine it’ll still be packed out. I’d like to get down more but as I used to work at the stadium on a match day, and before that went with my dad who did the same when I was a kid, I used to watch every game. When I left uni and set up home in Sheffield with my wife, I had other priorities such as wedding and doing out the house and it was too much of a commitment as travel, working before, the match itself and travel back to Sheffield was an entire day. I stopped working there and at the same time the stadium was getting packed out and unfortunately working there gave no loyalty towards tickets.
I get to ones when I can but an expansion would be good as I enjoy now when I go, going as a fan and just for the game but I unwittingly stopped going in favour of Jonny come latelys who never had the pleasure of Josh Low, Alan Maybury and Rab Douglas!!

 

Morning. Will Fofana start if everyone is fit?

 

Morning luv
early fantasy football planning

 

Got him in my team but really don't know if he's going to start, should do though he's a to player tbf.

 

like being a top player has much relevance in FF
after all Pickford would have been a top pick in the Euros and he has Tourettes ffs