How did we do? the players from Leicester City, who saw their preseason campaign end in a humiliating loss thanks to goals from Darwin Nunez, Bobby Clark, Diogo Jota, and Ben Doak.
Leicester City’s pre-season ended with a thumping by Liverpool as the Premier League side exposed the vulnerabilities of Enzo Maresca’s team.
By far the most difficult opponent City have faced this summer, Liverpool dominated the final hour at the Singapore National Stadium, with Darwin Nunez, Bobby Clark, and Diogo Jota scoring a quickfire first-half treble, with Ben Doak netting another in the second period, as Jurgen Klopp’s side ripped through the City defence whenever they gave the ball away.
The first half-hour, that included some quick, attacking play, is where Maresca will take confidence, but he will also know that his team has plenty to work on if they are to challenge for promotion out of the Championship, and even if they are to make a strong start to the campaign against Coventry next Sunday.
With just a week to go before the start of the competitive season, it was an intriguing line-up from Maresca, with wantaway duo Jannik Vestergaard and Timothy Castagne both in the 11, and with Marc Albrighton, Patson Daka, and Kasey McAteer forming the front three. Jamie Vardy was missing from the squad again.
But what City produced in the first 25 minutes did whet the appetite for next weekend. They produced quick, intricate, attacking football to bypass the Liverpool press and create chances.
Wilfred Ndidi, running forward from midfield, was denied at close range by Reds keeper Caoimhin Kelleher after one such excellent move, and then the Nigerian nearly teed up Albrighton. McAteer skipped away from Trent Alexander-Arnold and had a shot blocked.
In the first half-hour, Liverpool’s only chance came from an offside Nunez goal, but the Uruguayan did open the scoring when Mads Hermansen could only tip Jota’s shot into his path. From there, City fell apart with misplaced passes by Ndidi and Castagne punished by Clark’s sweeping finish and Jota’s header, Liverpool scoring their three first-half goals in the space of eight minutes.
The second half was all Liverpool, with blocks and Hermansen saves stopping the Reds from getting their fourth until Doak eventually did find the net, heading in after Joel Matip flicked on a corner.
There was a double chance for City to reply, Daka seeing a shot blocked after Ndidi’s charge forward before Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall flashed a shot wide, with Kelechi Iheanacho then nodding over in injury time. However, they did not threaten their Premier League opponents nearly enough in the second period, and so conclude pre-season with a heavy defeat. Here’s how we scored the players.
Mads Hermansen: His ball-playing is way above anything City have had from a goalkeeper in the past year, with clipped passes to full-backs and midfielders completed with ease. There were some inventive saves too, the Dane denying Szoboszlai with a leaping header. But he inadvertently helped set up Nunez’s first, slowing down the ball by getting fingertips on Jota’s shot that was heading wide. 5
Timothy Castagne: He gave the ball away for the third goal, and sloppy passes were a theme of his match. He struggled to deal with both Jota and Diaz, earning a booking for a blatant shirt pull on the latter. 3
Jannik Vestergaard: He won headers in the opposition box and pinged a few fine long balls to the wings early on. But he was caught flat-footed for Jota’s goal, and gave the ball away time and time again in the second period, occasionally making up for it with decent blocks. 4
Callum Doyle: He spread out to the left well early to make himself an option for Hermansen, and did well when he had time, but he looked among the most panicky of the City players when Liverpool pressed hard. 4
Ricardo Pereira: He was among the best City players on the ball and his link-up with Winks was delightful in the early stages, the pair clearly already on the same wavelength. His level didn’t drop as much as his team-mates’ did in the second period. 6
Harry Winks: The quick passing with Ricardo and his ability to escape an intense press was thrilling to watch early on, but it was his inability to find space thereafter that became a big part of City’s downfall, leading the defenders to try riskier passes and lose the ball. He did play one excellent pass in the second period to set up City’s best chance for a consolation. 5
Wilfred Ndidi: In the opposition half, he was City’s biggest threat in his new box-to-box role, using those long legs to make charges up the pitch and cause problems. But in his own half, he gave the ball away too often, including for the second goal. 5
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall: Once Ricardo and Winks had beat the Liverpool press, it was his job to carry the ball forward with speed and close control, and he did just that. He played a great pass around the defence for one of City’s good first-half chances too, and was busy in the second half as well. 6
Marc Albrighton: It remains to be seen if his kind of wing play is suited to what Maresca wants from a wide-man. He didn’t make the most of the few times he had space in the final third, but there were a couple of early dinked passes over the top to Daka that nearly paid off. 4
Patson Daka: He made himself a nuisance early on, not letting Konate have an easy ride, and that saw him help set up the big Ndidi chance. But he was a little sloppy when dropping deep to get involved in the build-up. 4
Kasey McAteer: He showed lightning pace and intricate footwork, beating Alexander-Arnold brilliantly in one attack and nutmegging Tsimikas in another, while also playing a cute pass for the huge Ndidi opportunity early on. However, he should have played another ball inside for Dewsbury-Hall, instead going for goal. 6
Wanya Marcal-Madivadua: Couldn’t make the impact he did in previous pre-season games, but partly because he came on during a period in which Liverpool were totally dominant. 4
James Justin: There were a few decent runs up the right wing, and a good delivery for the Iheanacho chance at the death. 5
Kelechi Iheanacho: He did not get all that involved in the game, which was not totally his fault, but then misjudged a header after making a good run to meet Justin’s free-kick as time ticked down. 4
Hamza Choudhury: Only on the pitch for a few minutes, during which time he got on the ball a couple of times but nothing more. N/A
