December: Seeing Out 2023 On A High
We're now into December, when the relentless fixture schedule continued. This didn't phase City, who improved on a juddering November, and filled the Foxes faithful with plenty of Christmas spirit, taking 19 points from a possible 21...
Monthly Recap - December
Championship position: 1st
Championship points: 62
EFL Cup progress: Eliminated in Third Round
FA Cup progress: N/A
Form: WWWWWDW
The busiest time in the football calendar was upon us, and it was a crucial time for Leicester, who needed to rectify mistakes made in the previous month and retain first place.
They got off to a good start by beating West Bromwich Albion 2-1. Harry Winks became the saviour once again, sliding in to place Kiernan Dewsbury Hall's unselfish pass into the back of an empty net as the pair broke away in injury time, just minutes after the Baggies had cancelled out Dewsbury-Hall's opener.
This was followed up by a 4-0 thumping of Plymouth Argyle in which Stephy Mavididi scored twice, along with Patson Daka and Wilfred Ndidi getting in on the act, confirming the win before an hour had been played at King Power Stadium.
Just four days later, we were back on Filbert Way, this time under the lights for a midweek matchday against Millwall. A tighter affair still fell in favour of City, finishing 3-2; Jannik Vestergaard, Ricardo Pereira and Daka the goalscorers that saw off the Lions with almost 80 per cent possession.
That weekend, Leicester made the short trip west to face Birmingham City where the score also ended 3-2, once again in the Foxes' favour. Mavididi was running the show and made the home side aware of this at St. Andrew's, as he took a seat on the pitchside billboards in celebration of his first goal of the day, and sixth of the season.
The Blues kept fighting though and got back into the game on two occasions through a Jordan James brace but a second for the Leicester No.10 and a second of the month for Dewsbury-Hall was enough to settle the result.
A routine 3-0 win over Rotherham United followed next, in which Daka was back on the scoresheet with a double, along with Italian midfielder Cesare Casadei, who rounded off a 12-minute scoring spree on Filbert Way.
What followed, on Boxing Day, was a clash of the titans match at Portman Road. It was the first of two fixtures against Ipswich Town and things were going to plan after Mavididi wrestled control for City with a goal 24 minutes in.
Not for the first time this season, and not the last either, the hosts drew back level with a Sam Morsy strike three minutes into injury-time, keeping Leicester within touching distance.
Disappointed to concede so late on, the Foxes bounced back quickly with a 2-0 win over Cardiff City. Dewsbury-Hall and a wonder strike from James Justin , later voted as Goal of the Season in the Club's End of Season Awards, saw off 2023 in style in south Wales - the Foxes were eight points clear at the turn of the New Year.