Jesus your keen
Thanks for the information,
Think this is going to be a cracker
With city just edging it 😀

Our defence is going to get pummelled today. Simply awful at the back. Dendoncker not expected to be match fit for another four to six weeks, whilst Boly is clearly out of his depth.

Dread to think what Maguire will do to us from set pieces.

Going forward, we are not clicking at all. Don't know what Traore can offer except running in a straight line very fast and Costa is never Premiership quality. Reckon that Cav is a much better prospect but he's about the be sold (hence the silly shoulder excuse).

Wolves have royally messed up in the summer and I fear that a relegation battle is favourite over any aspirations to a top six place.

Still, a wasted season in the Champioship under that Italian gonk and then the lying Scotsman did not kill us, so a wasted season in the Premiership won't kill us provided we stay up.

Puel already talking about his successor.

It was said sarcastically in an interview. Not like a journalist to put a spin on something...

Uncle Herbert - would it be a ‘wasted season’ to fight relegation and sty up - surely that it is first priority?

Aspirations of finishing top 6 is ludicrously high, no !?!?

Wolves trash City

Live @ https://www.ja606.co.uk/articles/viewLiveArticle/394960
One match ban enabled

comment by Keep_the_faith1 (U8129)
posted 25 minutes ago
It was said sarcastically in an interview. Not like a journalist to put a spin on something...
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Whatever makes you feel better. Sounds confident about his prospects.

I watched the interview Tam?
Puel’s own reflection on the longetivity of his time at Leicester doesn’t affect my opinion of it either way and I am by no means currently desperate to keep him, although he does deserve at least a little more time.

Perhaps he should be a tad worried after last season though, that I am in agreement with like many Leicester fans, but to reflect on it accurately he definitely said it sarcastically/arrogantly as opposed to with defeatism/anxiety in his voice.

Which perhaps was not the best position to take considering our league results over the last 10+ games!

UH your comments are pathetic.

The team will settle and passing, movement and shape will all improve. The first game nerves were understandable we didnt play well at all yet still managed to score 2 and earn a point against one of the better sides in the league.

I can see today being another score draw which again wouldn't be a bad result. After the City game is when we can start predicting wins.

comment by Keep_the_faith1 (U8129)
posted 41 minutes ago
Uncle Herbert - would it be a ‘wasted season’ to fight relegation and sty up - surely that it is first priority?

Aspirations of finishing top 6 is ludicrously high, no !?!?
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UH speaks with forked tongue, he knows nothing about football, check out his awful predictions league results for confirmation

I think a score draw is a reasonable prediction.

Until relatively recently - if we went ahead in a game we rarely didn’t win.

That, along with softer goals conceded at home, has changed though.

I have an anxious feeling that we will concede early again, get an equaliser and dominate possession with few chances created.

With Vardy starting, there is of course a chance we could bag 2 or 3 considering his quite frankly, incredible shots to goal ratio at Leicester over the last few seasons (I have a feeling his was the best in the league amongst strikers last season?). However, currently, any games including us scoring several goals are based on excellent finishing as opposed to umpteen clear chances being created.


My favourite part of the Sky Sports write up was Merson’s reflection about us looking to play and catch Wolves on the counter attack :/ - between pints - does he actually watch any team play outside of Arsenal!?

Don't be fooled by our comfortable top half finish (9th on 47 points) from last season. Initially as he imposed his change in style Puel crafted a side which was exciting to watch, culminating in a 4-1 thrashing of Southampton at St Marys. However, as we changed into a team absolutely obsessed with possession, we became ponderous, passing the ball sideways and backwards, creating few chances (at one home match there were wild celebrations when we managed our first shot on target around the 85th minute - it wasn't a goal btw); the players were simply not up to this style. Vardy cut a lonely frustrated figure up front and largely gave up on his trademark pressing game, and how he managed to get anywhere near 20 goals is frankly bewildering. The second half of the season was tedious to watch, Claude hasn't got many brownie points in the bank.

In the last 21 games of the season we averaged a point a game, which would have kept us in the relegation dogfight over a season, 38 points would have seen us at 15th place so that's the form we were showing. It's also the reason why Claude is favourite for the axe with the bookies and why he was asked the question after starting the season with a loss. The answer was definitely of humorous intent intended to defuse the question, which it did at the time.

We've also lost our talisman, nearly half of our goals were either scored, or made by Mahrez.

There have been some good looking acquisitions over the summer, Maddison in particular. There were some heartening signs at Old Trafford, we looked much more comfortable with a passing game, although still lacking in penetration and end product. Today will be a huge test of our new methods, if we can't do better then we're in for a difficult season.

If we start with the same back 4 it's shaky to say the least. Chilwell is to put it kindly still learning his defensive trade at LB, Maguire makes mistakes, including losing possession way up the field on one of his forays, Wes is ageing rapidly and Amartey! Let's just say he's a useful squad player as he can fill in numerous positions, although fairly poor at all of them. And if Neves gets a free kick in sight of goal we may as well concede before he kicks the ball, given Kasper's inept positioning for these.

Despite some of my thoughts above I'm still quite hopeful about Puel's brave new world. Time will tell if we will succeed in it, today will give some indication. If we are struggling come October, Claude will likely be shown the door, our owners have shown they are pretty ruthless.

It should also give a steer on how the season may unfold for Wolves, given there's a fair chance of some points on offer this afternoon.

Today is a big indicator of what’s to come. If it’s a possession based sideways passing borefest with no creativity and baffling substitutions then it’s business as usual.

To be fair, I think it's difficult to judge against a newly promoted team in their first away game in the PL this season.

What I would say: this game is one of a group of 7 games that, not only will be collectively indicative of where we can go with this new style and new recruitments to enhance it, is vital in terms of Puel's future at Leicester City.

Yes, we can have a huge, dramatic discussion about how little time managers are given in modern football and whether it is justified or not - but it is just the way it is (and actually, inclusive of the games last season - that would have been a significant amount of time if we are still looking toothless on the whole and not winning games <particularly at home!>.

Wolves
Southampton
Liverpool N/A
Bournemouth
Huddersfield
Newcastle
Everton

I am not as fussed as some about the imminent production of good football and a host of chances being produced game in game out - but this relaxed, laissez faire attitude (based around stepping back and looking at the long term plan) comes with a HUGE caveat that we are, in the meantime, at least getting results to keep us afloat and in touching distance of that medium/long term goal.

As such - across those games, I think we'd be looking at an absolute minimum of 10 points for Puel to not be in serious danger of losing his job and for us to be in a depressing position again. You'd therefore say prospectively, as part of this collection of games through to the start of October, that Wolves at home will probably be an important 3 points....and if we don't accumulate a reasonably amount of points (with reasonable performances or with a dip in that points total and excellent performances coupled with incredibly bad luck) - the international break could well see a change in manager.

First away trip of the season today and with Albion, Villa, Blues and Stoke all in the Championship this is the shortest journey of the season.

Boly, Costa and Jota were all below par last Saturday and we need them to show their true ability today. Although if Traore is considered fit enough to start then Costa may have to settle for being an impact sub.

With Mahrez having joined Kante through the exit door this is a very different Leicester ten from the one that won the title. They look solid enough defensively but their season could hinge on how well Maddison and Ghezzal support Vardy in attack.

1-1 today I reckon

Good post KTF. If I’m honest though Puel has had most of last season to mound a style he wants to play and it wasn’t a great success. Now you could argue that he didn’t have the players, but how much has really changed?

Most of the starting 11 against United were here last season. He had Ian, Gray, Maguire, Chilwell, Vardy, N’didi and couldn’t mouldy them into any kind of coherent team. I’m not convinced adding a cheaper Mahrez and a no.10 is going to change that much, although granted Maddison looks excellent.

I guess my point is, he doesn’t have the luxury of time because he used all that last season in his dismal 21 game run. He needs results and last season tells you that he won’t get that unless the football is significantly better

By the way is Steve Bull on the bench for you guys? Can see him nicking a goal today

I agree Back Starr. There was a discussion on talksport yesterday where they were bemoaning owners about sacking managers early and referenced Puel as if he had just come in this summer and there was already papertalk about his exit - as you mention, this isn’t the case because he has had far more than that solitary game at Old Trafford last week.

What I would say in terms of new additions and changes, whilst I don’t agree that Maddison is there to take the place of Mahrez, what he is there to do is provide a player in a position that is vital in a 4231 that we didn’t have last year, even if you include Riyad (and the failure of Silva to come to the forefront in this role behind the striker <I have reservations about Silva’s impact this year> )

I therefore do see optimism from that perspective, but as you also mention it is also important that creativity comes from Ghezzal coming in and also Gray stepping up. My big concern in our primary formation, which admittedly I hadn’t really reflected on over the summer, is the players who we bring on in this formation (due to form or injury) who are Like-for-like....do we have alternatives for attacking full backs, creative attacking midfielders, another striker like Vardy? Obviously I’m maybe running before I can walk here and it’s about bedding in this new style and formation with a competent first 11 before working on squad players who are just as good but I worry that our tactical changes will either have little impact if we stick with the formation or we will be forced to change formation mid-match our of necessity rather than choice which is never ideal. This is me being all rather pessimistic, which is not my general outlook, but food for thought.

Ps sorry, I’ve steered this way off topic

comment by Black Starr - I have flippers for hands 🐬 (U12353)
posted 57 minutes ago
By the way is Steve Bull on the bench for you guys? Can see him nicking a goal today
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Only if Walshy's playing Blacky, used to have some great battles.

comment by Ohsoproudwolf (U11548)
posted 13 minutes ago
comment by Black Starr - I have flippers for hands 🐬 (U12353)
posted 57 minutes ago
By the way is Steve Bull on the bench for you guys? Can see him nicking a goal today
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Only if Walshy's playing Blacky, used to have some great battles.
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They were the days!!

Hoping to catch a live stream for.this but it's a busy day here today with the next door neighbours having a wedding on the property which I have been heavily involved in setting up. About to go survey the damage after brutal storms last night cut power etc etc but gotta sneak away at 10am to.watch us crush this Leicester thing