Analysis of Leicester City’s 2-1 win over West Bromwich Albion, including Harry Winks’ late winner and the celebrations that followed, teammate squabbles, Kieran Dewsbury-Hall, and more.
Leicester City fans could have been forgiven for thinking the tide had turned when Josh Maja poked in with two minutes remaining.
City were the masters of late goals earlier in the season. Their team had now conceded a game-changing goal in the final 10 minutes of three of their previous four games.
But then came the season’s most dramatic moment to date. City, under pressure and looking the more likely of the two sides to concede an injury-time winner, raced from back to front in a flash, recalling Claudio Ranieri’s 2016 heroes, to score with seconds to go and maintain their lead at the top of the Championship table.
READ MORE: Carlos Corberan explains why he refused Enzo Maresca’s handshake following Leicester City’s victory.
READ MORE: Enzo Maresca admits Leicester City’s wild celebration for late winner at West Brom
For those who had traveled to the Hawthorns, Harry Winks’ goal was yet another highlight. City has now scored a winner in the final 10 minutes five times in 22 games this season, the same number as in the 121 games before Enzo Maresca arrived.
And each of them has been widely celebrated, adding to the memories. Winks slid in, rounded the post, and dashed towards the audience. He did it again when the final whistle blew a few minutes later.
Maresca also went insane, sprinting onto the field and leaping into the arms of Hamza Choudhury. The City manager was given a yellow card and admitted to being a little too exuberant, but it’s clearly something he’s driving.
Celebration police, cynics bemoaning players and fans for celebrating goals ‘like they’ve won a cup final,’ abound on social media. But this is how football should be. Maresca instructs his players to properly celebrate and to get as close to the fans as possible. It makes it more enjoyable for everyone.
And why shouldn’t City rejoice? This was a significant accomplishment. It’s not that winning at West Brom is unusual for City – they’ve now won six in a row at the Hawthorns – but the Baggies had won five of their previous six before Saturday, and they’d lost just three of their previous 24 home games under Carlos Corberan. With Ipswich winning later in the day, City needed this result to maintain their lead at the top of the table. That is something to be proud of.
The victory also prevents the frustration from boiling over. If City had drawn, they would have five points from their previous five games. Stephy Mavididi turned backwards 10 minutes into the second half rather than attack the space in front of him, eliciting a murmur of discontent from the away end.
So things aren’t looking so good just yet. There is still room for improvement and people to be won over. But this team’s ability to deliver in big moments cannot be denied.
Defensive shortcomings will not derail the season, but they can be improved.
City’s performance was not pretty and was unlikely to rank among their best under Maresca, but it was better than in midweek. City were also very good defensively.
Wout Faes and James Justin stood out for their ability to keep West Brom out of the most dangerous areas of the pitch. The Baggies’ 41% possession was the fifth highest among City’s opponents this season, but they ranked 12th for touches inside the area.
West Brom had only five shots from inside the penalty area, three of which were set pieces. Maresca said after the game that his team needed to learn to be more “gritty” in the final few minutes of games to avoid conceding goals like they had in their previous two games. They must also improve their defending from corners, free kicks, and long throw-ins.
City may not appear to be as vulnerable to set-plays as they have been in recent seasons, but they have now conceded six goals from such situations. Only five teams in the Championship have conceded more goals.
It isn’t a major issue that could derail City’s season, and if there is to be a focus for development, it would be better if it was the attack. However, if they can improve their set-piece defense, their defense will be truly brilliant.
What three heated exchanges reveal
City was better than midweek at moving the ball into attacking areas. With less possession, they created more good chances. However, the attack felt incomplete.
West Brom have one of the best defensive records in the division, so City were always going to be limited in terms of what they could produce in the final third. But they didn’t always help themselves. Only against Sunderland was City’s pass completion rate lower than it was at the Hawthorns, which caused disagreements among teammates.
When Mads Hermansen lost possession of the ball while attempting to find Kieran Dewsbury-Hall, Winks turned around and slammed Kelechi Iheanacho, presumably for not making himself an option and giving the West Brom defense more to think about, thereby easing the focus on Dewsbury-Hall. Iheanacho gave everything he had at Winks.
Winks played a pass to the flank looking for Mavididi in the second half, but the winger was in the process of making a forward run and wanted it in behind. Following the ball’s exit from play, the two exchanged words.
Dewsbury-Hall then rifled a cross past three City defenders and out for a throw-in on the far side. Wilfred Ndidi was frustrated rather than angry, but he was adamant that Dewsbury-Hall should have dinked his ball in rather than lashing it across.
Are these tense moments cause for concern? No way, Maresca. He believes this is due to his team expecting more from one another.
“I think it’s just a matter of demanding more from themselves,” he told reporters. “This is crucial. We can collaborate, but I can expect more from you, and you can expect more from me. The only goal is to make the team better.”
It’s good news as long as the tension in those moments does not exceed full-time. This is a team that is already on pace to set a Championship record and is still striving to improve. Hopefully, they’ll be on the same wavelength in a few months and these moments won’t happen. However, the fact that mistakes and miscommunication generate such passion shows that they care, which is what everyone wants to see.
Dewsbury-Hall excels at the most difficult part of the game.
Dewsbury-Hall now has 13 goals and assists, nearly double the next best tally in the squad, with Mavididi and Jamie Vardy each on seven. At the end, the name of the homegrown midfielder was chanted.
But it still appears that he is more well-liked outside of the club. City fans, who see his every move, know he can improve. However, his numbers are impressive and deserve to be recognized.
Under Maresca, the move for his goal is becoming a City classic. Ndidi made brilliant runs inside the right winger looking for the ball, and his cross was met with a well-timed run and thumping header from Dewsbury-Hall. It’s a move that has resulted in numerous chances for City, and it’s nice to see it end in a goal this time.
The winner’s task appeared to be straightforward. But there are a lot of things that can go wrong there. There was too much time for Dewsbury-Hall to react instinctively, but perhaps remembering Southampton when he was the runner and Mavididi went for goal, he chose to pass to Winks.
At this rate, he will have more than 30 combined goals and assists this season. If he accomplishes this, he will have had a fantastic season, regardless of how many times his touch is off or his pass is erroneous. He’s excelling at the most difficult part of the game.
The chasing pack keeps the pressure on, but City has fixtures to close the gap.
It was an important weekend for City to win, with victories from Ipswich, Leeds, and Southampton keeping the pressure on. There appears to be a four-team race for two spots.
All four teams are excellent. Since the Championship’s rebranding 20 years ago, the highest number of points not earned automatic promotion is 89, which Brighton achieved in 2015-16. Right now, all four of the top four are on track to receive at least 90 points.
However, the run-up to Boxing Day appears crucial for City to establish themselves as the clear front-runners. They face four teams that are all ranked 15th or lower, while their opponents face some decent opponents throughout the division, including Ipswich and Leeds on the weekend before Christmas.
City’s only loss to a team in the bottom half came against Sheffield Wednesday. If they can avoid another in the coming weeks, they will be in an excellent position at the halfway point.
