Almost a vital six pointer for Leicester as we face off against Watford for the final time this season.
With thanks to wfc123 from Vital Watford.
1) What are your hopes for this season and where do you see yourself finishing now we are almost at the finishing line?
My hopes for the season were very simple: better last season’s 11th-placed Championship finish in order to justify the sacking of Sean Dyche, who had done so well to deliver a top-half finish in the first place.
That decision has very much been justified.
I think we will finish third. My heart would love to see us overhaul Hull City and win automatic promotion but it’s going to take us winning our remaining two and Hull losing both of theirs for it to happen – I just can’t see that happening.
In spite of that, it has undoubtedly been a phenomenal season.
2) Were their any highlights or lowlights from the season so far?
Let’s get the lowlights out of the way – the 5-1 defeat by your dear neighbours Derby County was a real low and the kind of result which made me fear for this season. Only a handful of the loan additions had been involved up to that stage and with Martin Taylor departing for Sheffield Wednesday the day before, the future looked like mid-to-lower-table.
Highlights: frankly, the season in its entirety has been brilliant. We could never have expected nor predicted we would be in this position and the fact that we have swashbuckled our way into third, flirting continuously with second has been brilliant. It’s been the most exciting season for years and we’ve achieved it watching the kind of football which other teams can only dream of, played by players who are far too good for the Championship.
Speaking specifically, the 3-2 win at Huddersfield was probably my highlight of the season. We played three at the back for the first time, Tommie Hoban made his breakthrough, Troy Deeney went a long way to paying the club and the supporters back with his late penalty winner and Fernando Forestieri proved his magician credentials.
And we won, of course!
3) Any weaknesses that we can take advantage of – hints welcome!
Particularly away from home we like to soak up the pressure and hit teams on the counter. The likes of Forestieri, Matej Vydra and Ikechi Anya all have pace which can be exploited but they needed to opportunity to utilise it. By sitting back and inviting us to attack, you’re playing a risky game though, because we have two excellent playmakers in Almen Abdi and Nathaniel Chalobah who can pick out passes for fun.
We’re not infallible of course, but I don’t think we have one prominent weakness. If one of Lloyd Doyley, Marco Cassetti or Joel Ekstrand aren’t available, Fulham loanee Matthew Briggs will come in at centre-half – then we have a very obvious weakness!
4) Who is your dangerman and were their any new additions we should look out for but won’t be aware of?
Based on his recent form, the aforementioned Forestieri is the man to watch out for. A hat-trick of assists in the 4-0 battering of Blackburn added to the three goals he had scored in his previous two starts.
He’s added a lot more consistency to his game recently and has cut out a lot of theatrics which compromised his otherwise superb performances earlier in the campaign.
Hand-on-heart, I can say I have never seen a more technically gifted player in a Watford shirt in my time supporting the club. He sees things and can do things that I couldn’t do on FIFA, he’s incredibly hard-working for someone you could almost label a ‘luxury player’ and he loves being here.
Contrary to popular opinion, these loanees are 100 per cent committed to the club and in the case of Forestieri, who signed a five-and-a-half-year deal in January, it’s a commitment he was happy to put into writing.
5) Where do you see Leicester finishing now, do you think we have enough in us to get ourselves back in the play off spots?
As you only trail Bolton by a point, I don’t see why not. Your form recently appears to have been quite poor but I still think Nigel Pearson has a very able squad and with a big effort over the next 180 minutes, I think pinching sixth spot from under Bolton’s noses is plausible.
6) If you could sign one of our players, who would it be?
Wes Morgan has been a model of consistency at Forest & now with Leicester and I think although we have good options at centre-half, we’re looking incredibly thin on the ground there at the moment with Nyron Nosworthy, Fitz Hall, Neuton and Hoban all sidelined.
7) Where do you see our main threat?
Chris Wood has had a great season for both yourselves and Millwall whilst David Nugent is a pesky little so-and-so who always seems to score against us. Anthony Knockaert has impressed too – in short, your striking options are very strong!
8) Where do you think our main weakness lies?
You’ve been pretty consistent this season until recently and that could be down to a number of things, though I’m guessing a lack of squad depth hasn’t helped. It’s a good squad, but there isn’t a great deal of depth – apart from up front.
9) Which way will the game go, a prediction please…
3-1 to the Golden Boys.
Vital Leicester on:
Vital Leicester on:
