Maresca: More Improvement Always Necessary
Back on the road this weekend, the Championship leaders travel to Swansea City for Saturday’s 3pm BST kick-off at Swansea.com Stadium, an opportunity to assert their position at the division’s summit and potentially open up a five-point gap to second place.
Ahead of the trip to south Wales, Leicester’s Manager sat down to address the assembled media inside the King Power Centre at LCFC Training Ground, briefing the press on how his team have used the international break and what he expects from Michael Duff’s Swans…
The work continues
The international break left a small pool of players in Seagrave, allowing individual details to be tuned on the training pitch over the course of the last two weeks. It was a beneficial time for Maresca and his coaching staff to analyse what can be done to further advance the high-flying Foxes.
“Like the previous one, we tried to work and be focused on the lads that were here with us doing some specific work,” he began. “Because we had 10 or 11 players here, we tried to focus on all of them doing something specific.
“More with the wingers, Stephy [Mavididi], Abdul [Fatawu] and Marc [Albrighton], we tried to work on the first touch, first control with the right foot. Sometimes it has to be with the left. Just to teach them when to use one or the other foot.
“To use the time that we have, it’s the best for us. When you like to be on the pitch and coach players, it is the best moment because it’s what we like to try to teach and improve them. It’s a good moment. During the international break, we have time to spend with them to try and improve the small details that there is no time to work on during the season.”
Studying The Swans
The upturn in Swansea’s form has been stark and following a tough run of fixtures they appear to have turned a corner in their quest to move closer to the play-off positions, sitting inside the top half of the table heading into the game.
The Italian explained: “It’s quite clear, they struggled when they started the season. In the first six games they lost four and draw two. Then the last five games they won four and draw one. The dynamic is completely different now. It’s a good team, they try to play; they have different weapons that they try and use.
“They are quite different to Southampton. They keep the ball. Swansea less so, but at the end it’s not a direct team, it’s a team that try to play. I think they are going to play in this way tomorrow. When you play five games and win four, you expect the same. They may change, we’ll see.
“I think even if we lose it’s been a fantastic start. But we’re focusing on tomorrow’s game and especially on what we want to do, and then it’s a consequence. If we do the right things and are nine out of 10 or eight out of 10, we get results doing the right things. Sometimes you still don’t win. But we are just thinking about tomorrow’s game.”
Understanding The Idea
Several players have taken on differing responsibilities this season, none more so than Wilfred Ndidi, who has moved from a holding midfielder into a position that allows the Nigeria international to play in a more advanced role.
Enabling goalscoring opportunities for the previously deep-lying midfielder, his tally of three goals and four assists supports the fruitful nature of this new role.
“We always mention that we are looking for players arriving in the box because most of the ball happens inside the box,” the former Manchester City coach explained. “I always saw Wilf as having the capacity to do that. He always played as a defensive midfielder but it’s something with work you can improve.
“Even before the international break, in the position, he was improving a lot. He is understanding the game now and what is going to happen, so he anticipates. At the beginning, it was a new concept and new idea so he struggled a bit. Now it’s understanding the idea and the game. During the season, you can see that he’s adapting very well.
“We work a lot with Kiernan [Dewsbury-Hall] on the other side, when Stephy has the ball, to attack that space. If the central defender follows Kiernan or Wilf, we are one vs. one with the striker against the other central defender, 50-50. And if they don’t follow, they are free. Sometimes they follow with a midfielder, but that means Ricardo [Pereira] and Harry [Winks] are free. That’s how we try to play.”