Praet appears to have become the solution to City’s problem position
BELGIAN IN LINE TO MAKE 100TH APPEARANCE AGAINST LEEDS – BUT YET TO PLAY A FULL MATCH
DENNIS Praet is improving game by game, manager Enzo Maresca has said, with the Belgian appearing to have nailed down his place in Leicester City’s problem position.
Praet has started the last three Championship games for City and looks to be winning a battle with Kasey McAteer and Yunus Akgun to play alongside Kiernan DewsburyHall in attacking midfield.
It became a position of contention for City after Wilfred Ndidi suffered a serious muscle injury and Cesare Casadei was recalled by Chelsea.
But Praet, who received praise from Maresca early in the campaign before he was sidelined for four months with a back issue, looks to be the manager’s go-to man.
After the 29-year-old started at Watford, Maresca said: “He gives us more physicality in the middle, and also he’s a quality player.”
Against Middlesbrough on Saturday, Praet was one of City’s better performers, doing well to make himself an option in attacking areas.
His consistently good runs on the inside-right channel saw him receive more progressive passes and have more touches inside the box than any other City player, with the Belgian perhaps unfortunate not to create more chances with his crosses inside.
After the 2-1 home defeat, Maresca said: “For me, Dennis is getting better game after game.
“He arrived there many times and crossed the ball.
“Sometimes we were there and sometimes not. I think overall Dennis did a very good game.”
He will be favourite to start for City tomorrow night for the crunch clash with promotion rivals Leeds.
If he does, he will be making his milestone 100th appearance for the club.
However, he has still never completed a full league match for City.
The loss to Boro was the closest Praet has come to playing a full 90 minutes in a league fixture for City, with the midfielder substituted just before added time began.
But it’s now 74 league outings since his transfer from Sampdoria in 2019 without getting from the first whistle to the last.
Praet is one of six players out of contract with City at the end of the season. Maresca has said previously the club will wait until their league status becomes more clear before initiating talks with those whose deals are coming to an end.