It seems like Leicester City had a deficiency of wingers for many years in the Premier League. Even though there are at least two players vying for the jersey at every position in the team, it frequently seemed like City was stumbling to find players for the wide positions.
Although Harvey Barnes was a reliable presence on the left, City abandoned a style that used wingers when the homegrown talent was hurt under Brendan Rodgers. The numbers were just not there at the club.
This season seemed like it might be different. After Barnes moved to Newcastle, Marc Albrighton was the only senior winger left for City. However, Kasey McAteer and Wanya Marcal were elevated to the first team, Stephy Mavididi was signed at the end of July, and Yunus Akgun and Abdul Fatawu arrived on loan in the last week of the window. City offered a multitude of choices.
Now, it doesn’t appear to be. Mavididi has started every one of City’s previous twenty-six Championship games. Of City’s previous eighteen league games, Fatawu has started all but two of them due to suspension.
There doesn’t seem to be much competition out wide, which could be detrimental to City and their two regular wingers. Their position on the team is not in danger. They are able to change form without losing their position.
Mavididi, who harassed full-backs and scored frequently during December, rightly received the division’s player of the month award. He hasn’t been able to maintain those standards, though. He scored a stunning goal against Chelsea, but he had fallen short at Stamford Bridge thus far. If he had to battle for his spot or had more opportunities for rest, would he be inconsistent?
Last month, Enzo Maresca clarified that he can tell from the opening minutes of the game whether Mavididi will have a strong performance. “The good thing about Stephy is that you can tell when he’s on his game from the first minute,” he stated. He exits the game, and you can see it starting in minute.
“His efforts to maintain balance are intense. We’ve been dating for six or seven months, so he is fully aware of my opinions. I’m not sure if I should inform him. All I can say is that he’s putting in a lot of effort and working effectively.
o Why doesn’t Maresca take advantage of his other choices? It boils down to the skill of the players in one-on-one matches. It’s critical to defeat a full-back to cause disruptions in the organization of a compact defense. The only players that can do that to the degree that Maresca desires are Mavididi and Fatawu.
Albrighton is a classic winger who can create explosive crosses. He won’t, however, routinely beat his full-back. Although Yunus is skilled in confined spaces, Maresca offered him limited opportunities outside before stating that he was superior in the middle.
The player to start this year on the rare instances when Mavididi and Fatawu have not been available is McAteer, who is now injured. However, his strengths are in scoring goals and entering.
Marcal’s inclusion is being called for more and more, particularly following his brilliant display against Bournemouth in the FA Cup. From the second half on, he showed that he was a threat to the opposition defense every time he had the ball.
Regarding the youthful winger, Maresca stated: “He performed extremely well (against Bournemouth).” Wana is doing very fine. He will unfortunately have to wait for his opportunity because Abdul and Stephy are already present. He needs to keep putting in the effort and get better.
Wanya and Abdul are not the same as Wanya and Stephy because the latter two are more one-on-one competitors. Wanya is a less aggressive player who can make more accurate passes and shots. He has amazing shooting ability. Our one-on-one play style demands that our wingers be exceptionally skilled. Even though they don’t always succeed, they can still attempt.
