After three consecutive defeats with 10 goals conceded, Leicester City have slipped into the relegation places for the first time this season.
With one game to go until the midway point — a home match against out-of-form champions Manchester City on Sunday — the midwinter is looking bleak for Ruud van Nistelrooy and his players, but it may not be all doom and gloom.
Leicester losing at Liverpool, who are seven points clear at the top of the Premier League, was not a surprise. The fact Leicester made them sweat was more unexpected.
Leicester are where many would have expected them to be as one of the promoted teams, who make up the bottom three, but they can still drag Wolverhampton Wanderers, Crystal Palace or Everton back into the mix.
To do so, they will need vital factors to go their way in the second half of the season.
Injuries
It was a hard enough task with a fully fit squad, but it becomes even more difficult with key players missing.
Abdul Fatawu is out for the season with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, while Ricardo Pereira has been missing since the start of November and could be out for another couple of months with a hamstring injury.
Mads Hermansen, arguably Leicester’s player of the season, has missed the last two and a half games and Van Nistelrooy said after the defeat at Anfield he could be out for a while longer with a groin issue.
Wilfred Ndidi, Kasey McAteer, Jamie Vardy and now Wout Faes have all picked up injuries, although captain Vardy has a chance to be fit to face City.
Leicester will need to be more fortunate with injuries for the remainder of the season.
Hermansen has been one of Leicester’s leading players this season (Stu Forster/Getty Images)
The transfer window
Van Nistelrooy has a vital transfer window this January and it is imperative Leicester bring in players capable of improving the starting XI, with a central defender and winger high on their wish list.
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Van Nistelrooy says he has been promised funds, but Leicester could use the loan market. Odsonne Edouard’s loan spell from Crystal Palace could be cut short to free up a second available spot. Eduoard, 26, has played just 142 minutes in the Premier League and has not been on the pitch since November 10.
Van Nistelrooy’s stature as a player and associations with Manchester United — over in the Netherlands and with fellow coaches, including Arne Slot could aid his cause — but the club has to back him and be prudent in their business.
Van Nistelrooy has said he has money to spend in January (Jan Kruger/Getty Images)
A solid foundation
Too many of Leicester’s players are struggling. Right-back Justin has come under fire from some supporters and was too easily beaten by Gakpo in the build-up of the goal that restored parity for Liverpool. But he is not alone. Faes has struggled to reproduce his best form this season as has left-back Victor Kristiansen.
Since taking over from Steve Cooper, Van Nistelrooy has selected the same back four in his five games to create a settled foundation on which he can build Leicester’s survival push. He wants stability at the back and prefers the experience of central defensive pairing Conor Coady and Jannik Vestergaard, but all four now need to step up.
In front of them, Boubakary Soumare has looked like the player he could become but, on other occasions, he looks like the player he has been in the past. Stephy Mavididi’s final decision-making has been erratic, too.
There is room for big improvements from all of them.
Stick together and be brave
There is a disconnect between a section of the fanbase and certain figures at the club, including some players, but that cannot become a detrimental factor.
Goalkeeper Danny Ward was left out of the squad at Anfield after being jeered in the home defeat to Wolves — Jakub Stolarczyk was handed a Premier League debut with Daniel Iversen on the bench — but he has not been the only one targeted.
Little is achieved by this other than venting frustrations. Pressure is part and parcel of the game in the Premier League, but some players do need more support than others.
It can have an effect on performances with players often hiding when in possession or looking to play the easy pass rather than the right one.
Leicester were braver in possession at Anfield, with tidy passing in spells, and they will need to continue that in a concerted way.
However, they need to show the fans more intensity. One aspect of Liverpool’s game that stood out is how hard they work off the ball to win it back, hunting in small packs to force a turnover or a mistake. The best sides outwork their opponents as well as outplay them.
Leicester need to do likewise.
If these four areas can turn in Leicester’s favour, there is hope there will be three sides below them in the table come May.
They have had many successful seasons in recent history — but if they pull that off, this campaign could be right up there with them.
(Top photo: Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images)
