Barnsley 0 Foxes 3
Report by Graham Tracey
Leicester demolished Barnsley for a third straight 3-0 victory on a night of jubilant celebration among the travelling fans. The contrast with last season’s abject Easter defeat at Oakwell could not have been greater.
With 12 games remaining, our safety cushion over third place is now so comfortable that the pessimism that has become second nature to us over the past dozen years is a thing of the past to me, and hopefully to all our fans now. Unlike a nervous batsman in the 90s, we are steamrollering our way towards our target, and a century of points remains very much possible. It would take a most cunning and evil psychiatrist to be able to convince our players that they are no-hopers who will fail to gather another 10-15 points to secure the championship.
Such is our reputation in the division that Barnsley looked resigned to defeat right from the kick-off – their victory over Forest seemingly giving them no confidence that this counted for anything against the division’s giants. It was important that we set the tone early doors, and Knockaert in particular did just that, hitting the bar from long-range and forcing Steele into a fine low save from a deflected drive.
Indeed their keeper was their only notable performer, and it was only due to him that the final score did not resemble the true pattern of play. Our hallmarks were pace up front, and neat inter-passing throughout the team.
Even the ref got in on the act, accidently intercepting a Barnsley attack, from which Vardy was played through to be crowded out by keeper and defender at the last minute. However, he made no mistake when put through again by Nugent, confidently stroking the ball beyond the keeper.
Nugent’s overall play was terrific, but he was surprisingly meek in front of goal, dallying once when clean through and putting a weak shot in when well placed. 34 years after my first Leicester match, I also learned something new – you can’t be offside from a goal kick. Only Vardy’s control prevented him from benefitting from Schmeichel’s quick thinking – a new move from us which merely underlined that we have the belief to try anything just now.
Such is our strength that even our supposed second string left flank, an unusual Ghanaian / Algerian axis of Schlupp and Mahrez, were really impressive and caused problems throughout. Mahrez deserved a goal for his probing play, and our defence was so under-employed (I can only remember Schmeichel using his hands once all match) that Schlupp could concentrate on attacking.
The only concern at half time was that the result was not done and dusted, but this just made two goals in quick succession in front of our end around the hour mark all the more enjoyable. Firstly, Nugent sent through Vardy, who showed great clarity of thought when forced wide to look up and chip the ball across goal for the onrushing Drinkwater to volley home. Then, Mahrez played through Vardy, who rounded the keeper outside the area and rolled it into the unguarded net.
The front two were replaced by Wood and Taylor-Fletcher, and Wood forced a notable save with a close range header. For a few minutes it seemed we would score at will, but in the end it was hard to maintain the same intensity with the match over, and we resorted to nutmeg competitions, with Schlupp producing two in quick succession.
There were scenes of delight amongst players and fans at full time. It was interesting to see Knockaert and Mahrez particularly revelling in the adulation of the fans – proof that most foreign players have not experienced the atmosphere of the English game in their own countries.
12 wins in 14 games. 12 wins would certainly keep us up in the Premiership, and surely Pearson and the other decision-makers are now making plans for next season behind the scenes. Effectively sealing our destiny so early is really useful in contract negotiations with existing players and thinking about who we may need to add to the mix.
I for one hope that the bulk of this team are given their opportunity. Momentum and confidence, together with several players with pace, may well help us stay above the mass of evenly-matched teams in the lower half of the top flight.
FOXES: Schmeichel 6, Schlupp 7, De Laet 6, Morgan 6, Wasilewski 6, Mahrez 8, James 7, Drinkwater 8, Knockaert 8, Nugent 8, Vardy 9. Subs Wood 6, Taylor-Fletcher 7, Hammond 6
The views expressed in this report are the opinions of the Trust member nominated to file the report only and do not represent the views of the Foxes Trust organisation