The First 10 Games – How Leicester Started Every Premier League Campaign
Following confirmation of the Club's 2021/22 fixture schedule on Wednesday, LCFC.com takes a look back through the years, through the perspective of the Foxes' first 10 matches in each of their 15 Premier League seasons to date...
1994/95 – A maiden Premier League appearance
Manager(s): Brian Little, Mark McGhee
Final league standing: 21st
FA Cup: Fifth round
League Cup: Second round
Leicester City 1 Newcastle United 3
Blackburn Rovers 3 Leicester City 0
Nottingham Forest 1 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 1 Queens Park Rangers 1
Wimbledon 2 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 3 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Everton 1 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 2 Coventry City 2
Chelsea 4 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 4 Southampton 3
City's first season in the Premier League ended in disappointment as Brian Little moved to Aston Villa in November, but Mark McGhee was unable to avoid relegation back to the second tier. The signs were there early on, though, with three successive defeats to start the season, while Leicester had to wait until late September for their first victory of the 1994/95 season.
1996/97 – Back in the big time & cup glory
Manager: Martin O'Neill
Final league standing: 9th
FA Cup: Fifth round
League Cup: Winners
Sunderland 0 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 2 Southampton 1
Leicester City 0 Arsenal 2
Sheffield Wednesday 2 Leicester City 1
Nottingham Forest 0 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 0 Liverpool 3
Tottenham Hotspur 1 Leicester City 2
Leicester City 1 Leeds United 0
Leicester City 1 Chelsea 3
West Ham United 1 Leicester City 0
Martin O'Neill's Foxes impressed early in 1996/97 and it was one to the remember for the Blue Army, as Leicester lifted the League Cup for the second time in their history and qualified for Europe. During City's first 10 matches back in the top-flight, they secured encouraging victories over Tottenham Hotspur and Leeds United, while also collecting draws against Sunderland and Nottingham Forest.
1997/98 – Early promise
Manager: Martin O'Neill
Final league standing: 10th
FA Cup: Fourth round
League Cup: Third round
UEFA Cup: First round
Leicester City 1 Aston Villa 0
Liverpool 1 Leicester City 2
Leicester City 0 Manchester United 0
Leicester City 3 Arsenal 3
Sheffield Wednesday 1 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 3 Tottenham Hotspur 0
Leeds United 0 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 1 Blackburn Rovers 1
Barnsley 0 Leicester City 2
Leicester City 1 Derby County 2
City combined domestic and continental duties for the first time since the 1960s during the 1997/98 campaign, which culminated in a second successive top-half finish in the Premier League. Consecutive wins over Aston Villa and Liverpool, meanwhile, were followed by draws against Manchester United and Arsenal – a 3-3 classic remembered for a Dennis Bergkamp hat-trick and Steve Walsh's late equaliser.
1998/99 – Established in the top flight
Manager: Martin O'Neill
Final league standing: 10th
FA Cup: Fourth round
League Cup: Runners-up
Manchester United 2 Leicester City 2
Leicester City 2 Everton 0
Blackburn Rovers 1 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 0 Middlesbrough 1
Leicester City 1 Arsenal 1
Derby County 2 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 1 Wimbledon 1
Leeds United 0 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 2 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Aston Villa 1 Leicester City 1
League Cup heartbreak was the headline for Leicester during the 1998/99 season, with O'Neill's side losing out to Tottenham Hotspur in the final at Wembley Stadium. City were cruelly denied a victory at Old Trafford on the opening day of the season, as David Beckham scored a last-gasp free-kick for Manchester United. Their start to the new campaign, though, included encouraging league wins over Everton, Leeds United and Tottenham Hotspur.
1999/00 – O'Neill's final season
Manager: Martin O'Neill
Final league standing: 8th
FA Cup: Fifth round
League Cup: Winners
Arsenal 2 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 1 Coventry City 0
Leicester City 2 Chelsea 2
West Ham United 2 Leicester City 1
Middlesbrough 0 Leicester City 3
Leicester City 1 Watford 0
Sunderland 2 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 2 Liverpool 2
Leicester City 3 Aston Villa 1
Tottenham Hotspur 2 Leicester City 3
Recovering from their Wembley setback one year earlier, Leicester lifted the League Cup for the second time in four years by overcoming Tranmere Rovers 2-1 in February. Their start to the Premier League season, meanwhile, was decent as well with three wins, two draws and three defeats leaving them with 11 points after eight matches, before impressive back-to-back successes over Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur.
2000/01 – A flying start
Manager: Peter Taylor
Final league standing: 13th
FA Cup: Quarter-finals
League Cup: Third round
UEFA Cup: First round
Leicester City 0 Aston Villa 0
West Ham United 0 Leicester City 1
Bradford City 0 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 2 Ipswich Town 1
Leicester City 1 Southampton 0
Chelsea 0 Leicester City 2
Leicester City 1 Everton 1
Sunderland 0 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 0 Manchester United 3
Liverpool 1 Leicester City 0
Manager Peter Taylor and goalkeeper Tim Flowers won Manager and Player of the Month respectively in September as City climbed to the summit with a 0-0 draw at Sunderland. While a 3-0 defeat by Manchester United appeared to dampen spirits in October, City remained in the top four until March, but eventually slumped into the bottom half.
2001/02 – The end of an era
Manager(s): Peter Taylor, Dave Bassett, Micky Adams
Final league standing: 20th
FA Cup: Fourth round
League Cup: Third round
Leicester City 0 Bolton Wanderers 5
Arsenal 4 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 1 Ipswich Town 1
Derby County 2 Leicester City 3
Leicester City 1 Middlesbrough 2
Leicester City 0 Fulham 0
Newcastle United 1 Leicester City 0
Charlton Athletic 2 Leicester City 0
Chelsea 2 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 1 Liverpool 4
A disappointing opener against Bolton Wanderers set the tone for City in 2001/02 as the Club's final season at Filbert Street ended with relegation from the Premier League. Taylor was replaced by Dave Bassett following the 2-0 defeat by Charlton Athletic, while Micky Adams took over the reins for the final weeks of the campaign, once relegation was confirmed.
2003/04 – Premier League football on Filbert Way
Manager: Micky Adams
Final league standing: 18th
FA Cup: Third round
League Cup: Third round
Leicester City 2 Southampton 2
Chelsea 2 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 0 Middlesbrough 0
Aston Villa 3 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 4 Leeds United 0
Liverpool 2 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 1 Manchester United 4
Fulham 2 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 1 Tottenham Hotspur 2
Wolves 4 Leicester City 3
Fresh from guiding Leicester back to the top-flight at the first attempt, Adams recruited frugally in the summer, with Les Ferdinand, Lilian Nalis and on-loan Marcus Bent among those to arrive. The first-ever Premier League fixture at Walkers Stadium, now King Power Stadium, maybe foreshadowed what was to come as the Foxes lost a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 with Southampton. A 4-0 win over Leeds, though, did briefly lift spirits.
2014/15 – The greatest 'Great Escape'
Manager: Nigel Pearson
Final league standing: 14th
FA Cup: Fifth round
League Cup: Second round
Leicester City 2 Everton 2
Chelsea 2 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 1 Arsenal 1
Stoke City 0 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 5 Manchester United 3
Crystal Palace 2 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 2 Burnley 2
Newcastle United 1 Leicester City 0
Swansea City 2 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 0 West Bromwich Albion 1
While Leicester actually began the 2014/15 season well, beating Stoke City and Manchester United, a sharp downturn in form saw them locked to the bottom of the table until April. However, under the management of Nigel Pearson - the winner of titles in League 1 and the Championship - City won seven of their final nine matches to secure their Premier League status in dramatic fashion.
2015/16 – Fairytale Foxes
Manager: Claudio Ranieri
Final league standing: 1st
FA Cup: Third round
League Cup: Fourth round
Leicester City 4 Sunderland 2
West Ham United 1 Leicester City 2
Leicester City 1 Tottenham Hotspur 1
AFC Bournemouth 1 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 3 Aston Villa 2
Stoke City 2 Leicester City 2
Leicester City 2 Arsenal 5
Norwich City 1 Leicester City 2
Southampton 2 Leicester City 2
Leicester City 1 Crystal Palace 0
The greatest season in Leicester City's history. Despite pre-season title-winning odds of 5,000/1, the Foxes began the campaign in the form of would-be champions. As the season progressed, City started to believe, beating the league's elite, and eventually winning their first-ever top-flight title by a margin of 10 points under Claudio Ranieri. The Foxes' early form was brilliant, but few believed Ranieri's men could maintain it...
2016/17 – Domestic frustration
Manager(s): Claudio Ranieri, Craig Shakespeare
Final league standing: 12th
FA Cup: Fifth round
League Cup: Third Round
UEFA Champions League: Quarter-finals
Hull City 2 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 0 Arsenal 0
Leicester City 2 Swansea City 1
Liverpool 4 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 3 Burnley 0
Manchester United 4 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 0 Southampton 0
Chelsea 3 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 3 Crystal Palace 1
Tottenham Hotspur 1 Leicester City 1
As champions, City went into the 2016/17 season opener at Hull City after competing in the International Champions Cup and the Community Shield, but were beaten by the Tigers at KCOM Stadium. However, while the Foxes may have been disappointed by their 12th-place finish, they nonetheless surprised many by reaching the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League on their maiden appearance.
2017/18 – Eventual cup quarter-finalists
Manager(s): Craig Shakespeare, Claude Puel
Final league standing: 9th
FA Cup: Quarter-finals
League Cup: Quarter-finals
Arsenal 4 Leicester City 3
Leicester City 2 Brighton & Hove Albion 0
Manchester United 2 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 1 Chelsea 2
Huddersfield Town 1 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 2 Liverpool 3
AFC Bournemouth 0 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 1 West Bromwich Albion 1
Swansea City 1 Leicester City 2
Leicester City 2 Everton 0
Just one win from Leicester's opening eight matches of 2017/18 led to Claude Puel replacing Craig Shakespeare at King Power Stadium, before ultimately finishing in ninth place in the Premier League. City also enjoyed runs to the quarter-finals in both the FA Cup and League Cup, losing out to Chelsea and Manchester City respectively on Filbert Way. Puel's reign, on the other hand, began with a morale-boosting 2-0 win over Everton on Filbert Way.
2018/19 – A stop-start opening
Manager(s): Claude Puel, Brendan Rodgers
Final league standing: 9th
FA Cup: Third round
League Cup: Quarter-finals
Manchester United 2 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 2 Wolves 0
Southampton 1 Leicester City 2
Leicester City 1 Liverpool 2
AFC Bournemouth 4 Leicester City 2
Leicester City 3 Huddersfield Town 1
Newcastle United 0 Leicester City 2
Leicester City 1 Everton 2
Arsenal 3 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 1 West Ham United 1
Leicester enjoyed two bursts of consecutive victories over the opening eight matches of the 2018/19 season, but defeats against Manchester United, Liverpool, AFC Bournemouth and Everton held them back. In February, former Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers arrived at the Club, helping to guide the Foxes to a second ninth-placed finish in as many seasons for City.
2019/20 – Looking upwards
Manager: Brendan Rodgers
Final league standing: 5th
FA Cup: Quarter-finals
League Cup: Semi-finals
Leicester City 0 Wolves 0
Chelsea 1 Leicester City 1
Sheffield United 1 Leicester City 2
Leicester City 3 AFC Bournemouth 1
Manchester United 1 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 2 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Leicester City 5 Newcastle United 0
Liverpool 2 Leicester City 1
Leicester City 2 Burnley 1
Southampton 0 Leicester City 9
There was plenty of reason for optimism early on in 2019/20 with victories over Sheffield United, Bournemouth, Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United. Impressive draws with Wolverhampton Wanderers and Chelsea, meanwhile, added to City's points tally before a 2-1 success over Burnley kick-started an eight-game Premier League winning run - a Club record - which would also include a staggering 9-0 triumph over Southampton at St. Mary's Stadium.
2020/21 – Flying on the road
Manager: Brendan Rodgers:
Final league standing: 5th
FA Cup: Winners
League Cup: Third round
West Bromwich Albion 0 Leicester City 3
Leicester City 4 Burnley 2
Manchester City 2 Leicester City 5
Leicester City 0 West Ham United 3
Leicester City 0 Aston Villa 1
Arsenal 0 Leicester City 1
Leeds United 1 Leicester City 4
Leicester City 1 Wolves 0
Liverpool 3 Leicester City 0
Leicester City 1 Fulham 2
Two runs of three consecutive wins, followed by two losses on the spin on each occasion, saw the Foxes make another encouraging start in 2020/21. While fans were still unable to attend, due to COVID-19, Leicester were particularly impressive on the road, securing wins over West Bromwich Albion, Manchester City, Arsenal and Leeds away from home. City would finish in fifth once more – also lifting the FA Cup for the first time in the Club's history.