Closing in on the ultimate dream
How much did you really know about Leicester City until the events of the last year? What they’ve already achieved under Claudio Ranieri matters little when you compare it to the ultimate dream, that’s slowly becoming a spine-tingling reality – a Premier League title, their first English crown in their 132-year history.
Qualification for the Champions League – which they’ve already achieved – was a fantasy beyond the wildest reach of any Foxes fan, but put that aside because Leicester’s next magic trick wouldn’t just be their finest hour – it would rank as the greatest of all sporting fairy tales.
Cast your mind back to Christmas 2014. Leicester, coached by Nigel Pearson, had 10 points, only three more than woeful Aston Villa had racked up in 2015 by the time Santa came down the chimney.
The Foxes were smoked and relegation beckoned but eight wins in their last 10 matches kept them up.
The first twist in this drama came when Pearson was sacked a few months after their great escape, following a fallout with Leicester’s Thai owners.
They were an outlandish outside bet of 5000/1 to win the title at that point.
Step forward, Mr Ranieri. The Italian boss lost in the wilderness after an ill-fated spell as Greece’s manager, which ended following an ignominious 1-0 defeat to the Faroe Islands 18 months ago.
His appointment was ridiculed in England and the Foxes were written off as relegation fodder but the Tinkerman has breezed back into the Premier League with his usual smile – and his tears after Leicester’s 2-0 win at Sunderland a few weeks ago warmed everyone’s hearts.
Even Ranieri, who’s remained cool and composed since his arrival, can’t believe what’s happening.
Then you have Jamie Vardy, whose meteoric rise from the depths of non-league football to England striker and the spearhead of Leicester’s devastating attack, is due to become a Hollywood film.
Vardy, 29, was earning $62 a week in 2007 playing for a local team in Sheffield, Stocksbridge Park Steels and five years ago, he said in an interview with a student about a transfer in the pipeline: ‘‘Ibiza Town, mate.’’
Halifax followed Stocksbridge, then Fleetwood Town, before a $2.07 million switch to Leicester in 2012.
Foreign stars Riyad Mahrez and N’Golo Kante were bought for about $828,670 and $14.5m respectively, a snip in the Premier League market when their wealthy rivals can afford the luxury of blowing hundreds of million of pounds on players from across the globe.
Leicester’s annual wage bill is $118m, approximately a quarter of Manchester United’s, and the Premier League’s rich are about to get richer, with a new $10.65 billion TV deal to begin from next season.
So Leicester’s timing is impeccable as it is refreshing, as football’s greed looks set to reach astronomical heights, with no sign of it buffering.
No sport on the planet comes close to matching football’s global appeal and what the Foxes are on the brink of achieving reminds us all why we love sport so much. Leicester have brought a smile back to the faces of fans around the world.