Season Review: August

Gameday 1: 

Leicester City 2-2 Everton 

Saturday 16 August, 2014 

Barclays Premier League 

Goals: Ulloa 22, Wood 86; McGeady 20, Naismith 45 

Attendance: 31,603 

Match Report: 

Leicester City twice came from behind to earn a hard-fought point against Everton in their first Barclays Premier League outing for over a decade at an electric King Power Stadium on Saturday. 

Aiden McGeady opened the scoring with a long-range effort midway through the first half but debutant City striker Leonardo Ulloa tied the game up at 1-1 shortly after. 

Scotland striker Steven Naismith put the Toffees back in front right on half time but late pressure from the Foxes saw them earn a valuable point through substitute Chris Wood, when he drilled an effort past Tim Howard with four minutes remaining. 

Nigel Pearson’s men next travel to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea, and with their first Premier League point on the table, his side will be bursting with confidence. 

Manager Reaction: 

“I think for Leo coming with the talk about how much he’s cost, he’s valued very much among the group of players. I’m very pleased for him to get off the mark. 

“For Woody (Chris Wood) on the back of a week with the amount of speculation surrounding his own personal situation it speaks volumes for the lad that he can come on and having one chance took it very, very well. 

“All in all it’s been a good day for both of those two but you keep it in context, it’s about what we’ve done as a team and I think we thoroughly deserved to get something out the game. 

“There was an element of misfortune in both their goals in the sense that Kasper made a great save from the initial melee from the corner but you’ve got to give them credit for the finish – it was a superb finish.” 

League Position: 10 

Gameday 2: 

Chelsea 2-0 Leicester City 

Saturday 23 August, 2014 

Barclays Premier League 

Goals: Diego Costa 62, Hazard 77 

Attendance: 41,604 

Match Report: 

Leicester City fell to their first Barclays Premier League defeat of the season despite a battling display against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday afternoon. 

Two goals in 15 minutes from home debutant Diego Costa and Eden Hazard sealed the points in a highly entertaining game in which City didn’t shy away from going forward. 

After an impressive display against Everton last weekend, David Nugent had a good chance to give his side the lead in the first half, but Thibaut Courtois denied the striker his first goal of the season. 

Chelsea improved in the second half, taking the lead through Diego Costa before doubling their advantage through Hazard just 15 minutes later. 

Manager Reaction: 

“We didn’t take our chances when we had them. The players are disappointed because at half-time we had shown enough in the first half - we’re a very capable side. 

“Unfortunately we didn’t quite find the right way to get something out of it so I’m disappointed – I think that is the overriding factor. 

“It should give us the knowledge that we are capable of performing very, very well but we’ve got to be able to sustain it over 90 minutes. 

“We must also continue to put in performances on a weekly basis to give us the best chance of winning games. That’s what we’re trying to do." 

League Position: 16 

Gameday 3: 

Leicester City 0-1 Shrewsbury Town 

Tuesday 26 August, 2015 

Capital One Cup 

Goal: Mangan 38 

Attendance: 8,017 

Match Report: 

Leicester City’s Capital One Cup campaign was brought to a premature end at King Power Stadium on Tuesday night, as League 2 Shrewsbury Town produced one of the shocks of the second round. 

Andy Mangan’s free-kick seven minutes before half-time proved decisive for Micky Mellon’s Shrews, who made the most of a below-par City display to advance to the third round for only the second time in 21 years. 

It was a disappointing exit for Pearson’s men, who used a run to the quarter-finals of the same competition last season to propel them into the crucial Christmas period and ultimately a promotion charge. 

But few would argue that more significant challenges lie ahead in the Barclays Premier League, where establishment in the top flight remains the Foxes’ top priority. 

Manager Reaction: 

“It was a poor performance from us at a time when whichever side we put out, I think we should have progressed. We didn't do enough and that’s disappointing. 

“What it does mean is that the players must understand that the level of performance and application we’ve shown in the two Premier League games so far, where we’ve been exceptional, is the baseline for how we go about this season. 

“When you get disappointing results, you’ve got to look at how you go about using it as a learning experience. 

“I think the players should understand by now exactly what is expected, and clearly it wasn’t enough.”

Gameday 4: 

Leicester City 1-1 Arsenal 

Sunday 31 August, 2015 

Barclays Premier League 

Goals: Ulloa 23; Sanchez 20 

Attendance: 31,535 

Match Report: 

Leicester City remained unbeaten at home after a thrilling draw with Arsenal at King Power Stadium in the Barclays Premier League on Sunday afternoon. 

An early strike from former Barcelona man Alexis Sanchez put the visitors 1-0 up but Leonardo Ulloa equalised just minutes later to secure the draw. 

Jamie Vardy, who made his Premier League debut after playing non-league football just over two years ago, spurned a late opportunity to seal a winner but Nigel Pearson’s men can be content with a point against the Gunners. 

The result means City jump out of the relegation zone up to 15th in the Premier League, facing a trip to the Brittania Stadium to play Stoke City following the forthcoming international break. 

Manager Reaction:

“I thought we played well again – three games in the Premier League where we’ve acquitted ourselves in a positive manner. 

“I know we’ve not dominated games possession wise in the way that we did last season but in all three games so far we’ve created chances to score and that is very encouraging. 

“For all Arsenal’s possession and attempts I don’t think we were as stretched as possibly people would expect us to be. 

“We’ve shown a level of discipline which is going to be important moving forward because every game that you play at this level is very, very tough and we’ve shown that we’ve got resilience but we’ve got capabilities as well in terms of our quality."

League Position: 15 

Top Scorer: Leonardo Ulloa (2 goals) 

High Point: Chris Wood’s thrilling late equaliser against Everton on the opening day of the season in front of a sold-out King Power Stadium marked City’s reintroduction into England’s top-flight with a fitting start to the 2014/15 campaign. 

Low Point: The Foxes’ Capital One Cup exit to League 2 outfit Shrewsbury Town proved to be one of the giant-killings of the third round, but the result ultimately meant Nigel Pearson’s outfit could firmly concentrate on their Premier League campaign.