Matchday Live Talking Points: No Faulting City's Effort & Making Your Own Luck
- Leicester City were beaten 3-1 by Arsenal at King Power Stadium on Sunday
- The result leaves the Foxes third in the Premier League after 26 matches
- Matt Elliott, Steve Walsh and Gerry Taggart starred on LCFC Radio's live coverage
- The three former City defenders provided their expert analysis at full-time
David Luiz, Alexandre Lacazette and Nicolas Pépé hit back for the Gunners on Filbert Way following Youri Tielemans' sixth-minute opener for City as Brendan Rodgers' men fell to defeat.
Reflecting on just Leicester's third reverse in 18 games in all competitions, Elliott, Walsh and Taggart were on hand to provide their thoughts on LCFC Radio's live and free matchday coverage...
No faulting City's effort
Steve Walsh said: “Sometimes football can be cruel. Injuries are causing an impact on our season, unfortunately for us. It’s no fault of our own, these things happen, but under the circumstances, with the number of games, this is happening at a few clubs. We’ve had more than our fair share. We didn’t play to the standards we know we can, the fluidity and intensity weren’t there. You can’t fault the effort, they gave everything they had.”
Injuries for the Foxes
Gerry Taggart said: “No complaints from me about the second half. Defensively, I thought Arsenal were excellent throughout. Their pressing was brilliant. Leicester couldn’t get control of the ball in midfield. Overall, they lost an edge. That’s been compounded with the injuries to Harvey Barnes and Jonny Evans. That tells you there’s a few players out there that are carrying things and that they’re trying their best for the cause.”
Making your own luck
Matt Elliott said: “You make your own luck up to a point. I remember saying after about 20 minutes of commentary that things were going Leicester’s way. They didn’t start particularly way, but they contained Arsenal. I think it was an intention way of playing, to let Arsenal have possession, with [Kelechi] Iheanacho trying to work as a split striker. They got themselves in front, but Arsenal gradually got back into it and played very well.”
Being ready for tests to come
Steve Walsh said: “We’ve got to get up for Wednesday. They don’t come any quicker. These lads will be wounded after a tough week and they have got to get themselves back into the right mentality. There’s a big few weeks coming up with some good games that they can win, there’s no doubt about that. Arsenal played well today, they deserved to win and they were the better team. We’ve still got a squad which is good enough to get on.”
Steely characters in the dressing room
Gerry Taggart said: “If you look at the run-in, there’s only one midweek game after Wednesday night until the end of the season, it’s pretty much Saturdays and Sundays. It’s been a tough week. It wasn’t to be. They’ve got to pick themselves up and go again. That’s the hardest thing sometimes. We haven’t really seen back-to-back losses before this season, not recently anyway. We know there’s some steely characters in that dressing room.”
The reward is worth it
Matt Elliott said: “It’s just a period. They’ve got to be mindful among themselves of what they’re capable of. At times, you’ve got to be resilient and show that strength of character and help each other through it. These are top-quality players going through a rough period, for a number of reasons. They need to understand the reasons why it’s happening and be ready for the challenge ahead. The reward is something worth digging in for.”