Leicester City have struggled to adjust to Premier League football following their promotion from the Championship. The Foxes have only won one of their first seven games, and some fans are already putting pressure on newly recruited manager Steve Cooper. However, concerns was alleviated over the weekend when Leicester beat Bournemouth 1-0 at King Power Stadium thanks to a Facundo Buonanotte wondergoal. Buonanotte has been possibly the most effective summer signing, yet he is just on loan from Brighton. Caleb Okoli has also been a success, but there is one newcomer who is simply not working out, and fans are becoming increasingly upset with his inclusion in the starting lineup.
Leicester’s recruitment of Jordan Ayew was a blunder. The recruitment of Jordan Ayew from Crystal Palace was puzzling at the time, especially given the price Leicester spent for him. City spent £8 million on the 33-year-old and signed him to a three-year contract, so there is little to no sell-on value. While he has not been awful by any means, Ayew simply isn’t at the level required, and he is actually impeding the development of Abdul Fatawu, who was perhaps Leicester’s finest player last season. The experienced forward has yet to score in the league and does not pose a significant danger down the right wing.
Ayew has failed to record an assist in seven league appearances, yet Cooper continues to start him over Fatawu, who scored 20 goals last season. Steve Cooper must adjust the system to accommodate Abdul Fatawu and Stephy Mavididi. Cooper has been accused of putting on the brakes and fielding a defensive lineup in the first seven league games. The former Nottingham Forest manager continues to deploy one offensive winger and then an inside forward.
That means Stephy Mavididi and Fatawu have yet to start a game together, which absolutely must change. Cooper could use a more typical 4-3-3 formation to accommodate his top players, notably Ricardo Pereira.
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