The Fosse Way

Leicester were back at the KP for the first time this season, in their second match, against Liverpool. This represented a good chance to get a draw or a reasonably unlikely win. Liverpool finished 7th last year, comfortably mid-table, and they also had a destabilising change of manager going into the season. They lost the Merseyside derby 4-1 last week in their opener. The gap between the women’s teams is much less than the men’s teams, but it was still a surprise to see them beaten so comprehensively.

Both sides needed to bounce back after conceding four goals last week, get some points on the board and some positive vibes around their teams. In the end, Leicester managed to come out of this with a surprisingly comfortable 1-0 win, but the journey there was not simple at all. Shannon O’Brien’s second yellow in the 56th minute and Emily van Egmond’s headed goal two minutes after changed the game completely and gave us a glimpse at just how Leicester can stay up this season.

Liverpool were very much on top in the first half, they looked to play it out of the back, and Leicester gave them as much time as they wanted. We set up in a 5-2-2-1, with O’Brien and Olivia McLoughlin changing places between the lone striker and one of the midfielders behind in the attacking two. The back 5 sat deep, with Asmita Ale being slightly wider higher up, always ready to get the ball out quickly from defence.

While it might seem a smart move to sit back and soak up pressure, the amount of time Liverpool had to pick a pass felt absurd. The attacking three of Hannah Cain, McLoughlin and O’Brien stayed in a narrow line just at the edge of the centre circle and rarely pressed until the ball came near them. This allowed Liverpool to play quick, concise passes and cut through them very easily. Liverpool absolutely dominated the early stages and got through again and again.

There was a soft yellow card for O’Brien in the 7th minute. It was a beefy challenge, but out on the touchline and inside the Liverpool half, it didn’t warrant a yellow in the eyes of most people who don’t support Liverpool. There was a moment of excitement for the fans at the KP when some quick interplay between Janice Cayman and Sam Tierney worked the ball forward for Cain to cut back from the right wing. It went to a Liverpool defender to clear, but the novelty of a coherent passing move and some sort of attacking intent was not lost on me or the crowd. Liverpool had 77% of the possession at around 20 minutes into the first half, and it certainly didn’t feel like we’d had 23% of the ball.

Liverpool’s dominance never quite resulted in a goal or even many clear-cut chances. Liverpool’s manager, Gareth Taylor, was previously at Manchester City and is well-trained in the City Group™ possession style. This was thankfully the type of toothless possession of a lot of teams at the height of Pep-ball that had the high concept but not quite the talent to pull it off. Leicester started to get a handle on the game as the half wore on. Liverpool’s passing moves started to break down, partly due to Leicester sharpening up and Liverpool losing their rhythm as well.

The void left by Liverpool’s fading dominance wasn’t really filled by Leicester. They had a few chances, but nothing concrete. Whenever we did have the ball, there was very little movement from players ahead of them to receive it, more often than not leading to a pass to a player under pressure or a long ball with no one to chase.

The priority at this point was to get in at half-time 0-0, and it felt very possible. We were still giving Faye Kirby, Liverpool’s keeper, as much time as she wanted on the ball, to the point that a few fans in the crowd started counting every time she had her foot on top of the ball. Whether this was a call for her to get it launched or for Leicester to go and press her wasn’t clear, but it was a clear sign it had been no classic so far.

With 10 minutes left of the first half, the cameras showed a little girl in ear defenders having a nap on her dad’s knee. It felt like she wouldn’t miss anything, and frankly, she didn’t miss too much. We killed the game completely. There were occasional breaks forward and moments of excitement, but going in 0-0 at halftime is exactly what we needed, and Leicester delivered on that.

After the break, Liverpool did that horrible rugby thing and kicked it out to touch at the start of the second half. There should be some sort of punishment for this, but it seems like an extension of the old school way football seems to be leaning. Liverpool substituted Mia Enderby for Ceri Holland, possibly due to a knock. Enderby looked dangerous throughout the first half and arrived late in the box a few times to cause a bit of havoc in the Leicester defence. Both sides set up much the same; Leicester were in the harder-pressing mode that they were in towards the end of the first half. It felt like we were pushing for a goal to defend, rather than just looking not to concede, a welcome change from the passive nature of the first half an hour or so of this game.

There was an excellent pass from deep by Ale to O’Brien, but O’Brien was well offside. Leicester looked like they were getting a grip on the game, and the link between defence and attack was starting to happen. Cayman won a free kick just over the halfway line in the 52nd minute. Tierney landed it in the box well, but Liverpool dealt with it easily. If we’re going to set up to play deep and hit teams on the break, we’re going to need to improve set pieces and make them a big part of our attack. Football is moving back to a focus on set pieces. When the big money teams that are able to play through you are also putting effort into set pieces, it’s crucial that teams that don’t have the talent to slice through a defence regularly get these down to a tee.

The game-changing moment looked to have come in the 56th minute. O’Brien, pushing down the right wing, had a tussle with Jenna Clark adjudged to be a foul. O’Brien’s remonstrations got her a second yellow, and she was sent off. Two soft yellows left us down to 10, the boos rang out as the KP feared this could ruin the small steps forward we’d taken. Inspired by righteous fury, we saw Van Egmond, unmarked on the penalty spot, nodding it in from a Cayman cross for her first Leicester goal. We’d gone from hoping to hold on for a 0-0 draw to suddenly looking at keeping a 1-0 lead. 

From here on out, it proved an easy ride for Leicester. You’ll often hear managers say it’s harder to score against 10 than it is against 11, and that proved true today. The crowd booed every touch from Clark, seen as the villain of the day, and it seemed to get to her, with a few sloppy passes and a general lack of focus, seeing her subbed in the 75th minute. Leicester saw out the game with very little jeopardy. There was a good header saved by Janina Leitzig and a shot blazed over the bar by Kirsty MacLean from just inside the box, but nothing got past Leitzig, giving Leicester their first win and some hope for the rest of the season.

What this game made clear is that we need a permanent manager; whether that is Passmore or somebody else, it doesn’t matter. We need someone who is definitely staying to come up with a plan that the players can buy into, so we don’t have to rely on an external sense of injustice or siege mentality to inspire us to victory. We had a top 6 defence last season, and the back 5 we have are capable of that level again. A solid defence needs to be the focus. We’ve got hard workers in midfield and attack, and a few good players to come back from injury. 

Everyone played well, including O’Brien before she was sent off, but special mention has to go to Ale. She is an absolute dynamo. She’s playing a role that is vital for a team that will sit deep like this. You need someone who is always available to play the ball out to, get herself in great positions and get back again to help the rest of the defence. Ale could develop into a real star for this Leicester side. We just need the right plan in place, because we certainly have the fight.