Vardy could be entering Final year at King Power
CLUB MUST DECIDE WHETHER TO OFFER STRIKER, 35, A NEW DEAL
THROUGH the autumn, when Jamie Vardy was Mo Salah’s closest challenger at the top of the Premier League scoring charts, the decision was obvious. Then he picked up the longest two injuries of his City career – a hamstring issue that kept him out for two months and a knee problem that sidelined him for another six weeks – with only two appearances in between them.
When those injuries hit a 35-yearold, there are inevitable concerns over the impact on their quality and longevity. Suddenly, the decision was in doubt.
City got Vardy back in time for the Roma fixtures but his limited involvement was seen by some as a sign of a striker on the wane.
But now, in just his second Premier League start of 2022, he has scored twice.
When you watch the way he scored his goals against Norwich, and then take a look at his statistics, it feels like the decision should really have been clear-cut all along.
Taking all that into consideration, the decision over Vardy’s future is in the balance again.
He has one year left on his contract at the King Power Stadium, but should he have more?
He may well be 36 come next summer, an age where a steady decline in output is expected.
But Vardy can afford a drop-off because he is at the top.
Ranked by non-penalty goals scored per 90 minutes, Vardy has the best record of any player to have netted at least five times in the Premier League this season.
He’s above Mo Salah, Harry Kane, Cristiano Ronaldo, Son Heung-min, Diogo Jota, all of them.
And that’s while playing for a team that has only mathematically guaranteed their survival with 10 days in the season to go.
Many of the arguments around Vardy relate to his pace.
To the wider public, that is his defining characteristic. If your game is based on speed, you tend not to be a player who can stay at the top deep into your 30s.
But Vardy’s game has developed to a level where he no longer requires an Olympic-level burst of acceleration.
His brace against the Canaries was all about the timing of his movement, which was impeccable, Vardy playing right on the line to keep himself onside but also break clear of defenders.
It is not like he was super clinical either. While that would not be a bad thing, it reflects better on his future ability the more chances he is getting on the end of.
His tally of six shots against Norwich was the most he has had in a Premier League game this season.
It is worth noting too that his performance came amid events at High Court where his wife’s high-profile libel case continues to dominate headlines, and is beginning to cross over into goings-on at City.
It could have proven a distraction for Vardy, but it did not appear to affect his performance.
There are caveats though. This was a poor Norwich team that had already been relegated.
It’s not often City will play teams with a combined lack of quality and lack of something to fight for.
Brendan Rodgers has been playing down Vardy’s potential to keep going too.
He told written media that opportunities for hat-tricks would be few and far between for the striker from now, while he said on the radio: “You’ve got to be careful with expectation.”
City may also have to bear in mind Vardy’s wages. He, along with Kasper Schmeichel, is the club’s best-paid player.
Can they afford for that to be the case for someone, as has been the case this season, that can only play half of the club’s fixtures?
Given that the decision is in the balance, it feels like City will probably see how Vardy’s fitness goes over the next few months before ultimately making the call.
But it is worth saying now so as to prepare for the potential emotions of next May: City’s greatest-ever player may be entering his final year at the club.
Claudio Ranieri’s Leicester City tenure ended with a nine-game winless streak, while Claude Puel went without victory in his final seven games in charge of the club.
Those were the last two occasions City had gone so long with tasting victory before the seven-game run that preceded the win over Norwich.
Despite those stats and the fates of the managers before, Rodgers cut a laid-back figure at the King Power Stadium.
Not that there was any danger surrounding his future, but he may have been anxious to get three points from a match City were heavy favourites for and really needed to win to pick up the mood, which was low after the Everton game.
But rather than stand on the edge of his technical area, directing play from the sidelines, as he always does, Rodgers spent pretty much the
whole of the second half sat in his dugout. There were no second half substitutions. None of them even warmed up.
“I was enjoying it, the players were in a good place so I thought I’d have a rest,” Rodgers said when asked why he watched the second period from his seat.
The truth is, his half-time change had done the work he needed it to.
City had created a good number of chances in the first half, only to be denied by an inspired Angus Gunn, but they had also left gaps on the counter-attacks.
The decision to play Youri Tielemans as the deepest midfielder had seemed a sensible one, given how City would likely dominate the ball, but there was a far better balance to the team when Papy Mendy was introduced at the interval.
In the second half, City were dominant, controlling the ball, scoring three goals, and restricting Norwich to just one shot.
There was not enough bite to the game to make it a totally absorbing watch in the second half, but it was a confident display from City and one that ticked a box that Rodgers has been striving for all season: it was the first time in the Premier League this term that City had had more than 60 per cent possession and won.
It’s a rarity that City get to play an already-relegated opponent, but they have two in a row with Watford coming up next.
Rodgers will hope the confidence and control of his team’s performance will be replicated at Vicarage Road and allow him another sit down.
With Wesley Fofana a late withdrawal, City were one substitute short for the game. It would have been ideal for a youngster to take that spot.
There is a balance to be struck for City at the moment. They don’t have European football to fight for, but there is a top 10 finish on the line, which will be a morale boost going into next season if secured, while each spot up the table will be worth around £2 million extra in prize money.
So City can’t fully plan for next season through their team selection yet. But it seems like the right time to bring in a youngster or two.
More than at any point in the past few years, it feels like City have a group of talents coming through their academy that can make the step up, with youngsters getting England recognition as well as enjoying plenty of good results on the pitch this season.
There are few things fans like more than Leicester lads making the grade, and so even seeing one or two of those names on the bench can inject a little excitement into the crowd.
It does feel like an opportunity missed not to see a teenager get their chance on Wednesday.
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