Ranieri’s reminder
Summer of change didn’t hurt Leicester last season
IT was a question put to manager Claudio Ranieri which served as a reminder of how far Leicester City have come in the past 12 months — how much of a destabilising effect will the loss of key men have on your Champions League ambitions?
Yes, the Champions League. But here they are, the champions of the world’s richest league embarking on a lucrative round-the-world tour as part of the International Champions Cup, with dates with PSG and Barcelona to come.
After that, it is the defence of their Premier League crown and their maiden entry into Europe’s premier club competition.
They are dining at football’s top table all right, but the vultures are circling. Gone is N’Golo Kante and, perhaps more significantly, Steve Walsh, the man whose recommendation to sign the midfielder made the club a £26million profit.
Ranieri, of course, insists they will be fine. He makes a valid point when reminding us of last summer’s upheaval and how the unrest of losing manager Nigel Pearson ultimately played out in the most memorable title victory.
Indeed, perhaps we are guilty of having short memories when it is put to the Italian that the wheels are about to fall off Leicester’s joyous bandwagon.
Ranieri has spent much of this weekend here in Glasgow denying speculation linking Riyad Mahrez with a move to Arsenal and reports that Leonardo Ulloa has demanded to leave.
Even when he had sought to allay those fears attention soon turned to the departures of Kante and Walsh, who have joined Chelsea and Everton respectively.
It is obvious, then, that the narrative destined to play out over the coming months is one which forecasts Leicester’s demise. Build ‘em up to knock ‘em down is how it goes.
They have further to fall than any other team this season given their lofty ascent, but Ranieri isn’t about to surrender before a competitive ball has been kicked. And why should he? Why should the loss of Kante and a member of the backroom team ‘destabilise’ their season? Leicester’s success was built on far more than two individuals, no matter how influential they were. Kante has been replaced and Nampalys Mendy — a £13m arrival from Nice — is as close to a body double of his holding-midfield predecessor as you can get. Against Celtic yesterday, when Leicester won on penalties after a 1-1 draw, he was bright and busy in the middle of the park, while Danny Drinkwater alongside him was his usual blend of craft and graft.
Mahrez, though, was the eyecatcher. The club have dismissed stories in France of a £42m transfer to Arsenal.
With him in the side they still boast the most exciting player in England last season and, on the evidence of his daring performance against the Scottish champions, another captivating campaign awaits. His goal — a delightful curler into the top corner — was a thing of a beauty.
Leicester would, however, be wise to tie him down to a new contract, just as they did with Jamie Vardy earlier this summer.
But equally shrewd is the five-year deal that 19-year-old left-back Ben Chilwell is about to sign. He looked a class act yesterday and it is easy to see why Liverpool want him.
August could be a long month waiting for the transfer window to close. After that, the doomsayers are predicting a long season.
Perhaps it will be long. After all, the Champions League final isn’t until June 3.