Leicester City made unwanted history on Saturday as they became the first team in Football League history to lose eight consecutive home games without scoring. The Foxes had one of their toughest tests this domination when they hosted Newcastle United at the King Power Stadium. It was a bad 3 to 0 loss that severely endangered their hopes of remaining in the fast-paced Premier League. This defeat marked Leicester’s eighth straight home loss without registering a single goal, contributing to an alarming trend of poor performance that has left fans disillusioned.
Newcastle kept their Champions League qualification hopes alive and kicking with a run-away win that was even more emphatic than the scoreline suggested. This win sent them to fifth in the Premier League table, level on points with fourth-placed Chelsea. The victory was particularly significant as it came at a crucial juncture in the season, where each point matters for teams vying for European football.
Leicester’s Continued Struggles
The match underscored Leicester’s continued frustrations. They have now not scored in more than 12 hours in the league. This latest defeat was their 15th in the last 16 Premier League fixtures. As a result, as England’s premier club side, they now sit dangerously near to the relegation zone. Leicester’s remaining games for the rest of this season. They sit a massive 15 points off-17th placed Wolverhampton Wanderers, meaning a relegation back down to the Championship is all but inevitable.
Leicester’s woes were evident throughout the match. The disappointed supporters that left the stadium at half-time were the best illustration of the discontent with the club’s failure to challenge this year. Manager Ruud van Nistelrooy acknowledged the severity of the situation, stating, “It’s clear where it went wrong. Very early in the game, again. Then after [34] minutes we lost the game and that’s a tough one to take.”
As Leicester continues to be shocked by their fall from grace, van Nistelrooy insisted that all is not well behind the scenes at the club. He pointed out that choices taken about manager and spending on the team had all played a part in their present situation.
“There’s something not right – whether it’s the decisions they’ve made managerial-wise, investment in the squad – something is not right at that football club to put in a performance like that this season. For Leicester to perform the way they have this season in the Premier League has been embarrassing.” – Ruud van Nistelrooy
Newcastle’s Champions League Hopes
Newcastle’s win over Leicester this past weekend has given new life to their hopes of a Champions League place. Jacob Murphy was the man of the match with two goals, and Newcastle’s depth in attack was an alarming early warning in the match. Harvey Barnes was on the scoresheet, capping a big win that pushed Newcastle three points clear in fourth position.
Eddie Howe was pleased about his side’s performance against Newcastle but admitted the hard work starts to keep their high levels of consistency. That’s a tough night, and considering the run of form we’re currently in… So it’s really important to digest this and sleep on it and rebound from it. That is it for now.
That victory drew Newcastle even with Chelsea on points. It handed them a crucial game in hand over their competitors. As we mentioned before, they’re in a prime position to take advantage of any other teams’ mess-ups in the race for a Champions League spot.
A Frustrating Season for Leicester
Leicester’s campaign has been consistently challenging, culminating in a club-record 11 home defeats this season. Yet the squad has never found its footing and rhythm in the pandemic-affected season. Both fans and players have especially noticed the issue of low goal scoring. Van Nistelrooy was adamant that confidence is the key to their current slump, though.
“It’s a confidence thing. In the second half you can see when there is no pressure anymore to play it frees people up,” he explained. “Then you see some reasonable football going forward but when the pressure is on to win games, stay in games, it becomes very difficult.”
The Foxes are staring down an uncertain future. They have an equally formidable task ahead of them—to change their fortunes around before the window of opportunity closes too much. Leicester only have seven matches remaining to play and are under a constant threat of relegation. To avoid falling back down to the Championship, they must find their killer instinct again soon.
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