If the Pre-Season Friendlies in 2014 had raised hopes in some quarters that they wouldn't battle relegation in the new season, after going unbeaten in 7 matches, a run that saw them come out tops against Everton which they had not won in 5 encounters dating back to Feb 10, 2001. Winning 6 out of 7, one of which was a 6-1 thumping of Likeston in preparation for a celebration laden season with the then Leicester coach, Nigel Pearson stating he was happy with the team performance. None would have dared to hope more that at the end of the 2015/16 season, they would still be in the top tier.
They had not only remained in the top tier but also did that in magnificent style; winning the league with 2 matches left after Chelsea held Tottenham to a 2-2 draw in a match Spurs which had gone 2-0 ahead in. With pictures later surfacing online showing Leicester players watching the match with rapt attention in the home of striker Jamie Vardy to watch the Tottenham match, evidently, tensions were on the higher end all over England as all sought to see if the day would be the one inwhich the unlikeliest of teams would win the EPL title.
Leicester coach, Claudio Ranieri has at several points in the season played down their title hopes, content instead to take a match at a time, secure qualification for Europe before daring to dream of the prestigious title. Perhaps that has been the key to the final triumph, with the experienced coach bringing stability to the team and ensuring players do not go overboard or ahead of themselves as the title run drew nearer to completion. A wise approach by the coach considering any further slip ups toward the tail end of the season would have only driven 2nd placed Spurs towards fighting more for the title.
Now, there are no more deliberations or speculations, no more mathematics and stated statistics as to why Leicester would or would not win the league... Only a celebration of the obvious and a widespread belief that anything is possible. Although it has looked to be inevitable over the last few weeks with Tottenham dropping points, several pundits and former players still see it as unbelievable. Former Leicester, Everton and England striker Gary Lineker describing the hometown team's achievement as "the biggest sporting shock of his lifetime".
To cap the complete turn around that the team experienced in less than a year, 29 year-old club top scorer, Jamie Vardy said, "It's an unbelievable feeling. I've never known anything like it. We were scrapping to stay in the league last season and on Saturday we'll be lifting the trophy... It's the biggest achievement in the history of a great club and we all feel privileged to be part of it".
From relegation battlers to EPL winners, it is truly a tale of a complete transformation!
Written by: Bravedave Abisoye Osifeko (@bravedave01)
Now, there are no more deliberations or speculations, no more mathematics and stated statistics as to why Leicester would or would not win the league... Only a celebration of the obvious and a widespread belief that anything is possible. Although it has looked to be inevitable over the last few weeks with Tottenham dropping points, several pundits and former players still see it as unbelievable. Former Leicester, Everton and England striker Gary Lineker describing the hometown team's achievement as "the biggest sporting shock of his lifetime".
To cap the complete turn around that the team experienced in less than a year, 29 year-old club top scorer, Jamie Vardy said, "It's an unbelievable feeling. I've never known anything like it. We were scrapping to stay in the league last season and on Saturday we'll be lifting the trophy... It's the biggest achievement in the history of a great club and we all feel privileged to be part of it".
From relegation battlers to EPL winners, it is truly a tale of a complete transformation!
Written by: Bravedave Abisoye Osifeko (@bravedave01)
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