City do not fear big clubs any more

FOXES HAVE WON 10 POINTS FROM THEIR FIVE MATCHES AGAINST THE TOP TEAMS AFTER PICKING UP JUST ONE POINT LAST SEASON

LEICESTER City may be seven points shy of their tally at this stage last season, but a closer analysis shows their results have actually been better, primarily thanks to overcoming their big club “complex”. After 17 games last season, City sat second in the Premier League table with 39 points to their name, having recorded eight straight wins through the autumn.

This time, they have 32 points, and occupy third spot, a point behind Liverpool and Manchester United.

Despite that seven-point deficit year on year, City are actually six points better off when the results are compared to their equivalents from last season.

This includes replacing each of the last season’s relegated sides with the newly-promoted teams (i.e. 18th-placed Bournemouth are exchanged with Championship winners Leeds).

City earned 26 points from their equivalent games last season, and the six-point rise this term can be put down to a much-improved record against the elite clubs. Brendan Rodgers’ side have earned 10 points from their five games against the traditional big six this campaign – beating Manchester City, Arsenal and Spurs, drawing with Manchester United, and losing to Liverpool – having picked up just one point from those fixtures last season.

The manager believes his players have successfully eradicated a fearfulness around facing the high-profile sides.

“What we’ve become better and better at, in different ways, is playing with authority,” he said on BBC’s Football Focus.

“It’s having no fear, not having a complex against the bigger clubs.

“When you have those results, it gives you confidence.

“That’s been the pleasing aspect of this season, those are important indicators for you along the way in terms of your confidence and that belief.” If City then match the rest of their results in comparison to last season, they will finish the current campaign on 68 points, which is usually enough to secure a top six spot, and potentially a European berth.

Rodgers has already set that out as the club’s target.

But City will need to continue their improvements if they are to stay in the top four on the coat tails of the leaders.

Asked if City are in the title race, Rodgers did not commit either way.

He said: “We’re up at the top end of the table. We’re honest with ourselves in where we’re at.

“Our ambitions haven’t changed, we want to qualify for Europe.

“There are other teams who will be better than us. That’s an honest answer.

“But what we will always do is work to bridge that gap.

“We’re not there yet but we’re looking to get closer to that and be really competitive.

“I think over the course of the season we’ve shown that, but we still have so much work to do.”

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