Genoa Test Concludes Leicester's Pre-Season

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Genoa Test Concludes Leicester's Pre-Season

We were narrowly beaten 1-0 by Serie A outfit Genoa at King Power Stadium in our final pre-season friendly of the summer before the campaign gets underway next weekend.

2026-08-01T21:34+01:00

by Sam Stevens

Published

10 Hours 48 Mins Ago

from King Power Stadium

Genoa Test Concludes Leicester's Pre-Season

We were narrowly beaten 1-0 by Serie A outfit Genoa at King Power Stadium in our final pre-season friendly of the summer before the campaign gets underway next weekend.

Sam Stevens

2026-08-01T21:34+01:00

Genoa Test Concludes Leicester's Pre-Season

We were narrowly beaten 1-0 by Serie A outfit Genoa at King Power Stadium in our final pre-season friendly of the summer before the campaign gets underway next weekend.

Sam Stevens

2026-08-01T21:34+01:00

Genoa Test Concludes Leicester's Pre-Season

We were narrowly beaten 1-0 by Serie A outfit Genoa at King Power Stadium in our final pre-season friendly of the summer before the campaign gets underway next weekend.

Sam Stevens

2026-08-01T21:34+01:00

Genoa Test Concludes Leicester's Pre-Season

We were narrowly beaten 1-0 by Serie A outfit Genoa at King Power Stadium in our final pre-season friendly of the summer before the campaign gets underway next weekend.

Sam Stevens

2026-08-01T21:34+01:00

With all eyes on the Carabao Cup First Round tie against Northampton on Filbert Way next Saturday, then the Sky Bet League One opener at Notts County a week later, Russell Martin handed a first start to new signing Liam Cullen on Filbert Way.

Lorenzo Colombo’s 69th minute strike was the difference in LE2 but Martin will have been enthused by elements of the performance from his squad, who have now completed a pre-season schedule which took them to Spain and back, as we enter our first matchweek of the 26/27 campaign.

A positive start

It was a busy day for City, with a behind-closed-doors friendly against Coventry City in Seagrave to contend with for one half of the squad. Later on, an hour before kick-off, we also announced the loan arrival of Tommy Watson, the former Sunderland winger who joins from Premier League outfit Brighton & Hove Albion.

This clash with Serie A opposition also offered a maiden outing in blue for Cullen, who arrived from Swansea City for an undisclosed fee earlier in the week. Following the signings of Conor Chaplin, Alex McCarthy and Christian McFarlane this summer, it’s been an encouraging few days where transfers are concerned.

Cullen was involved in much of the action during the first half, helping to maintain the pressure up high, but also having a few sightings of goal. The Wales international’s best chance came in the 19th minute when he was slipped in by Stephy Mavididi but Justin Bijlow, the visiting goalkeeper, was there not once but twice to deny him.

Going close

The clearest opportunity of the first 45 probably came inside 12 minutes. Luke Thomas combined nicely with Mavididi down the left channel to work himself into space. The Academy graduate delivered well, straight onto the head of Sammy Braybrooke, who had galloped into the middle, but his header was too close to Bijlow.

Jayden Joseph’s audacious curler from 30 yards also tested the visiting goalkeeper, who had to tip it over the angle of his goal, while Woyo Coulibaly’s effort inadvertently struck Bobby De Cordova-Reid on the line where otherwise it looked on a path to goal.

At the end of a strong first half, there was some concern when Ben Nelson was forced to withdraw with an injury, as Jake Evans entered the action, with Coulibaly dropping from right wing to left-back.

Genoa win it

The pattern in the early stages of pre-season was to see plenty of changes from Martin but, Nelson aside, the same XI which started the game were still on the pitch at the outset of the second half in Filbert Way. Indeed, it wasn’t until the 80th minute that we made another change as Kirsten Otchere replaced De Cordova-Reid.

The visitors led, though, before that switch, as Colombo raced through the middle and slotted past Jakub Stolarczyk in the 69th minute.

Daniele De Rossi’s Genoa, who have a friendly at AFC Bournemouth next on the agenda on their UK tour, did make changes and substitute goalkeeper Franz Stolz had to be alert when Evans went for goal inside the box. Caleb Okoli, too, was unfortunate to see a downward header bounce up and into the side-netting. Stolarczyk did well to frustrate Ethan Meichtry late on too, as it remained 1-0 to the visitors at King Power Stadium.

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