Leicester City 0 Burnley 0
Report by Mike King
After the previous depressing but accurate report after the defeat at Millwall, and with Play-Off expectations now 99% extinguished, it was a depressing walk towards the King Power Stadium and the crowd and atmosphere were equally subdued, but the hope was for a good win against fellow mid-tablers Burnley to cheer the faithful City fans as this disappointing season draws to an end. With Season Ticket renewals now at the printers for mailing out, a goal bonanza would help to entice the loyal fans back for another season in the Championship.
With the Sky match reporter sitting this one out, King and Gallagher were relegated to the bench with Drinkwater and Dyer returning, with St Ledger still not preferred in the heart of the defence and, of course, no sign of Mills. Where is he? (editor’s note: Mills seen on the car park pre-match looking embarrassed having a photo with a young City fan)
Burnley have some dangerous players in Austin, Wallace and West Ham loanee Stanislas, so they could pose a threat, but perhaps their motivation was equally subdued in front of their 2 coach loads of dedicated fans. We had a Premier Ref in Mike Jones but after recent performances by Premier officials perhaps it was not a good omen but he did have a good game with only one yellow waved.
The game started quietly with Bamba passing to yellow shirts instead of the intended blue ones, but the City were trying to push forward. Dyer had a couple of runs down the left but his crosses found Burnley defenders enabling them to clear. Mis-placed passes were catching as Konchesky gave the ball away as McCann's pass to Austin found him in space but his fierce shot was parried by Schmeichel. Burnley sensed an opening goal and Austin came close but was denied by a brave Morgan tackle.
However, the City players woke up and Nugent played in Drinkwater whose shot was well saved by 'keeper Grant. Marshall was trying his hardest to break the deadlock down the right but his corners and crosses were poor, going over all the City's players queuing up in the box.
In the absence of Gallagher, Marshall takes all free kicks, but one 20 yards out was perfect for the hovering Dyer's left foot but Marshall took command and his kick came to nothing. We just do not score from corners or set pieces now, oh for a Walsh, Taggart and Elliott to be in there on the end of a decent cross!
Grant then palmed away a Marshall free kick, and then he crossed for Drinkwater to glance his header wide of the far post. Schmeichel had to deal with a powerful shot that luckily went straight into his chest and in fact he was the busiest 'keeper in the first half. Beckford received no service from fellow players and he became increasingly frustrated, especially as Schmeichel's clearances were becoming increasingly erratic.
Half-time arrived and Birchy lined up a number of visitors to be interviewed on the pitch, including the Leicestershire Cricket team, Ricky Hatton and Neil Lennon (calls for him to go and put his boots on were ignored!).
Hopefully, the Foxes would play better in the second half, but was Pearson's team talk enough to raise the gloom? A Marshall corner did find Peltier, but his goal bound header was cleared off the line by Trippier. Nugent and Beckford were rarely in the game but they did combine when Beckford flicked the ball to Nugent, but his chance was scrambled clear, he usually would have scored from that position.
Then Burnley, who seemed content with one point, should have taken the lead. An unmarked Austin headed the ball wide of a diving Schmeichel. It hit the inside of one post, went along the line, hit the other post and as the open goal beckoned, Bamba appeared from nowhere to deny Austin at the post as the ball was scrambled clear. Phew!
Then Nugent caught the bad passing disease but at least he tries to make amends. With 25 minutes to go, Pearson finally got Schlupp and Gallagher to warm up, with Dyer and Beckford making way, but it could have been 3 or 4 other players. Schlupp had very little of the ball to show why he should start a game, but Gallagher's performance was….very poor, and that's being generous!
In injury time, an unmarked Austin should have won the game for Burnley as he headed over a cross from 6 yards, and that just about summed the game up. With Blackpool and Cardiff getting 3 points, any slim chance of a Play-Off place had evaporated as the City faithful trudged away from a depressing scene.
I suggest Morgan, who distributes the ball very well from the back, and Bamba, after a dodgy start, were our best players, which just about sums up the team's performance. As per the previous game, Wellens looks jaded and a change of club, perhaps a Division One side, would benefit him, and the same applies to Dyer and Gallagher.
Danns, who got better as the season progressed was badly missed and hopefully next season he will shine. The next 2 "meaningless" games should see some younger players in the squad and let's see what they can do versus the Hammers and Leeds. But will Pearson be brave enough?
Some East Standers were questioning the re-appointment of Pearson, and is he capable of taking this team forward or would the owners be seeking a new manager to build the team and dispose of a number of players (Beckford, Mills?) in the summer break?
Are they willing to spend more money to obtain their wishes and exposure of King Power in the Premiership? Could be an interesting few weeks coming up as we all get the credit cards or cheque books dusted off and pens at the ready!!!
City: Schmeichel, Peltier, Bamba, Morgan, Konchesky, Marshall, Wellens (Capt), Drinkwater, Dyer (Gallagher), Nugent, Beckford (Schlupp). Subs not used: St Ledger, King, Howard.
Burnley: Grant, Trippier, Duff, Edgar, Lafferty, McCann (Capt, Ings), Marney, Bartley, Stanislas (McQuoid), Wallace, Austin. Subs not used: Jensen, Howieson, Jackson
Referee : M.Jones Crowd: 19,806
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