Ipswich Town 1 City 0
Report by Paul Weston
After a very poor run of form over February, City’s fans, again turning up in great number, were hoping that the recent good performance against Blackburn could continue with a similar performance and three points against an Ipswich Town side fighting off relegation. Oh dear- how wrong could one be?
Nigel Pearson picked the same side as against Blackburn. That meant that Ipswich’s nemesis, David Nugent, was not fit enough to even make the subs bench. That must have given Ipswich a boost even before the kick off.
The match started in a very cagey fashion. It was clear that Ipswich Town were well drilled, limited in quality but determined in the tackle and in the air. City’s passing was misfiring and our two front men were not knitting together well. Knockaert was having one of his off days and Marshall flitted in and out of the game. It felt like a 0-0 or 1-0 match even from the earliest stage with both sides lacking penetration and ambition.
There were very few chances in the first half which was quite uneventful apart from a Kane shot which went into the side netting. He also “scored” just before half time with a goal ruled offside.
I felt that City were too cautious compared to their higher tempo performances at home and Ipswich could have been put under much more pressure. All too often there were long balls to our front men which were easily dealt with by the Ipswich defence. Nugent’s pace and movement was badly missed.
Chopra seemed to be the only danger man for Ipswich and he had several half chances saved by Schmeichel.
There were, for me, two key moments in a poor match. Although City were not playing well they should have scored in the 57th minute when a poor back pass from Chambers fell to the feet of Kane who missed an absolute sitter. It should have been 1-0 and I could not see Ipswich scoring after that.
Nigel rather too predictably made his substitution with 30 minutes to go, replacing Knockaert with Dyer (too late in my opinion, given that he terrorised Ipswich at the King Power stadium in a 6-0 thumping) and then brought on Gallagher for Marshall. Dyer did not get much of the ball at first but with his pace still created chances spurned by the front men later on.
Then, after a fairly even period of play where few chances were created, Wes Morgan, who has been my player of the season by a mile, was incensed that he had been elbowed and complained so vociferously to the ref that he was booked. He continued to complain even after that and, even if he was right, he allowed it to affect his game and he lost concentration. He got badly out of position, lost out to Murphy who played in McGoldrick who scored past Schmeichel. 1-0 to Ipswich and it could easily have been avoided.
City huffed and puffed after that, with too many long balls, although chances were still created. King in particular had a good shot blocked which was on target. City fans urged the team on but Ipswich managed to hang on for three valuable points.
City’s form, and at away games in particular, is now becoming a real worry and is just not good enough. I do not want to over-pessimistic but, out of the top six in the league we are the side out of form and losing ground almost every week now. We could drop out of the top six soon and not regain our position as Brighton and Middlesbrough and, dare I say it, Forest put pressure on us.
Just what has gone wrong? No doubt opposing teams have rumbled how we play and know that we can be easily out-muscled in midfield. They also know Knockeart’s and Marshall’s tricks, both flair players but lightweight, and often have two men on them to stop them in their tracks.
We also seem at away games to play for a draw, often at a slow pace, hoping to snatch a goal late in the game, rather than taking the attack and initiative to the home team. Also many of the team are not quite on form as they were earlier in the season. Even before Nugent was injured, he had lost his verve and scoring touch.
At the moment we are just not good enough and it would terrible if our season peters out as I fear it could. It will take a determined effort, and some imaginative management from Nigel, to lift this side for a final push. Two home games lie ahead against Leeds and Sheffield Wednesday. 6 points are a must!
Leicester: Schmeichel, De Laet, Morgan, Keane, Konchesky, Marshall (Gallagher 69), Drinkwater, King, Knockaert (Dyer 65), Kane, Wood. Subs not used: Logan, Whitbread, Vardy, Waghorn, Wellens
Ipswich: Henderson, Stearman, Chambers, Smith, Cresswell, Edwards, Hyam, N'Daw, Martin (Emmanuel-Thomas 80), Chopra (Murphy 80), McGoldrick (Drury 90). Subs not used: Loach, Kisnorbo, Mclean, Nouble
Attendance: 17,021Referee: Darren Deadman
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