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Luck probably has played a role, but you'd expect teams like Spurs (perhaps), Man City (definitely), and Arsenal (who really should have done better having been

Luck probably has played a role, but you'd expect teams like Spurs (perhaps), Man City (definitely), and Arsenal (who really should have done better having been the only team to beat Leicester twice this season) to be winning the league this year given the poor performances of Chelsea and Man U. The article doesn't mention that Jamie Vardy is the third-highest scorer in the league, which combined with brilliant individual performances from Mahrez (just awarded the PFA award for player of the season), Kante, Drinkwater, Huth, Morgan and more, has seen some superstar performances that have made a real difference against teams that would have been seen as superior last season. I'd suggest that Ranieri's success as manager has been as much to do with man-management as tactics. He was very careful to get the team focused on staying up, on getting 40 points to survive. It was only in the past few days that he told his squad to go for broke and push for the title. They responded by beating Swansea 4-0, despite being without their top scorer. The Leicester tale is magical, and incredibly unlikely, but I would challenge anyone who said that they don't deserve it.

Ntrails 10y ago
I don't follow football, but I'd love to see an analysis of the impact non league games have in terms of time played, injury rate etc. I would assume that clubs are doing a rational analysis of the cost/benefit from the extra games anyway, but yeah. Interesting to see it.
- colinramsay 10y ago
  This actually raises another great point, which is that Leicester have played fewer games than the teams around them due to not being involved in either the Europa League or the Champions League. They also dumped out of the FA Cup pretty early. Next season's going to be a lot more taxing for them in terms of games played.
- celticninja 10y ago
  You would also need to consider that the top teams tend to have larger squads, so they can rest players without impinging upon their overall quality.
  - colinramsay 10y ago
    Each Premier League team must register a squad of 25 players excluding under-21s, so unless the team's got a lot of really special youngsters the _size_ doesn't matter. What may matter is the strength of that squad. "Bigger" teams can afford to have stronger players on the bench, something that arguably Leicester don't have. However look at their last match in which Vardy was suspended: they won 4-0. They also got Demarai Gray in the January window who has barely played for them but looks to be an excellent talent (and indeed is only 19). That said, there's certainly a bit of fortune in the way their injuries have panned out this season.
    - celticninja 10y ago
      I guess that was what I meant. Man City players that didn't even make the sub's bench any given match day is probably more expensive than the entire Leicester squad.
barking 10y ago
Kante is an absolutely terrific player and in Morgan and Huth they have a classic centre half pairing that reminds me of Pallister and Bruce. But the player I'm most delighted for is Kasper "you'll never be as good as your dad" Schmeichel.
- kinleyd 10y ago
  And Kasper's dad goes ballistic (in the best possible way) as a tv commentator every time Leicester plays! He has to be one proud dad.
  - ameen 10y ago
    He's decent but Leicester's defence is certainly a key reason for him to have impressive stats. He isn't as good as Lloris or De Gea or even Hart. Forster would arguably be better than him if looked at objectively.
- colinramsay 10y ago
  He has been fantastic, not only at stopping goals but in his distribution. Leicester's first goal vs West Ham is a brilliant example of how devastating they can be: https://streamable.com/gvb9 https://streamable.com/gvb9 Schmeichel throws it almost to the centre circle to where Mahrez picks it up, takes a couple of touches and feeds it to a sprinting Kante who controls and passes to Vardy. Vardy finishes with a ruthless shot and it's still less than 15 seconds since the ball left Schmeichel's glove.
kerrsclyde 10y ago
Lifelong Leicester supporter here, I keep expecting to wake from this most far fetched of dreams... Yes huge amount of luck. I think there is more luck that many would like to admit in professional football (or sport). To some extent you make your own luck of course but our lack of injuries, limited suspensions and the fact that several of our players seem to have reached that sweet spot in their career at the same point have contributed. Ranieri is an extremely experienced manager, the fact that he has had to make limited changes to a team which was on a tremendous run before he arrived has been important. The tactics have changed subtly throughout the season, Vardy was the force that won us some many games early on. Then the defence took over, we've gone 1-0 up in some many games recently it makes it very difficult for teams to come back at us without conceding more.
- alessioalex 10y ago
  As a side-note, I heard that he gives players 2 days off after a match to relax. He supposedly says he is happy with their performance in the pitch and thus allowing them more time to recover.
  - ameen 10y ago
    It's also their drive and responsibility as well. Mourinho gave his players extra holidays and they absolutely crushed his trust and got him booted out of the club.
- kinleyd 10y ago
  Enjoy the ride! I'm enjoying the spectacle of Leicester and Tottenham's great run this year after the bottom fell out for some of the bigger clubs I normally support. It's fantastic - and I hope both can sustain the pace in the years to come.
  - kerrsclyde 10y ago
    I'm trying my best to enjoy it but I want it all done and dusted ASAP! I hope it opens the league up for others to have a go next season. West Ham, Stoke, West Brom, Southampton, teams like that. When you see 30 BBC pundits all predicting the same five (basically four) teams in the top four places you have to wonder what ramifications this has for the long term appeal of the league. [1] http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/33764700 http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/33764700

Ntrails 10y ago

I don't follow football, but I'd love to see an analysis of the impact non league games have in terms of time played, injury rate etc. I would assume that clubs are doing a rational analysis of the cost/benefit from the extra games anyway, but yeah. Interesting to see it.

colinramsay 10y ago
This actually raises another great point, which is that Leicester have played fewer games than the teams around them due to not being involved in either the Europa League or the Champions League. They also dumped out of the FA Cup pretty early. Next season's going to be a lot more taxing for them in terms of games played.
celticninja 10y ago
You would also need to consider that the top teams tend to have larger squads, so they can rest players without impinging upon their overall quality.
- colinramsay 10y ago
  Each Premier League team must register a squad of 25 players excluding under-21s, so unless the team's got a lot of really special youngsters the _size_ doesn't matter. What may matter is the strength of that squad. "Bigger" teams can afford to have stronger players on the bench, something that arguably Leicester don't have. However look at their last match in which Vardy was suspended: they won 4-0. They also got Demarai Gray in the January window who has barely played for them but looks to be an excellent talent (and indeed is only 19). That said, there's certainly a bit of fortune in the way their injuries have panned out this season.
  - celticninja 10y ago
    I guess that was what I meant. Man City players that didn't even make the sub's bench any given match day is probably more expensive than the entire Leicester squad.

barking 10y ago

Kante is an absolutely terrific player and in Morgan and Huth they have a classic centre half pairing that reminds me of Pallister and Bruce. But the player I'm most delighted for is Kasper "you'll never be as good as your dad" Schmeichel.

kinleyd 10y ago
And Kasper's dad goes ballistic (in the best possible way) as a tv commentator every time Leicester plays! He has to be one proud dad.
- ameen 10y ago
  He's decent but Leicester's defence is certainly a key reason for him to have impressive stats. He isn't as good as Lloris or De Gea or even Hart. Forster would arguably be better than him if looked at objectively.
colinramsay 10y ago
He has been fantastic, not only at stopping goals but in his distribution. Leicester's first goal vs West Ham is a brilliant example of how devastating they can be: https://streamable.com/gvb9 https://streamable.com/gvb9 Schmeichel throws it almost to the centre circle to where Mahrez picks it up, takes a couple of touches and feeds it to a sprinting Kante who controls and passes to Vardy. Vardy finishes with a ruthless shot and it's still less than 15 seconds since the ball left Schmeichel's glove.

kerrsclyde 10y ago

Lifelong Leicester supporter here, I keep expecting to wake from this most far fetched of dreams... Yes huge amount of luck. I think there is more luck that many would like to admit in professional football (or sport). To some extent you make your own luck of course but our lack of injuries, limited suspensions and the fact that several of our players seem to have reached that sweet spot in their career at the same point have contributed. Ranieri is an extremely experienced manager, the fact that he has had to make limited changes to a team which was on a tremendous run before he arrived has been important. The tactics have changed subtly throughout the season, Vardy was the force that won us some many games early on. Then the defence took over, we've gone 1-0 up in some many games recently it makes it very difficult for teams to come back at us without conceding more.

alessioalex 10y ago
As a side-note, I heard that he gives players 2 days off after a match to relax. He supposedly says he is happy with their performance in the pitch and thus allowing them more time to recover.
- ameen 10y ago
  It's also their drive and responsibility as well. Mourinho gave his players extra holidays and they absolutely crushed his trust and got him booted out of the club.
kinleyd 10y ago
Enjoy the ride! I'm enjoying the spectacle of Leicester and Tottenham's great run this year after the bottom fell out for some of the bigger clubs I normally support. It's fantastic - and I hope both can sustain the pace in the years to come.
- kerrsclyde 10y ago
  I'm trying my best to enjoy it but I want it all done and dusted ASAP! I hope it opens the league up for others to have a go next season. West Ham, Stoke, West Brom, Southampton, teams like that. When you see 30 BBC pundits all predicting the same five (basically four) teams in the top four places you have to wonder what ramifications this has for the long term appeal of the league. [1] http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/33764700 http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/33764700