By Daramola Babalola,
If you are not a strong football fan, it may be difficult to fully understand the absurdity of Leicester City’s having a chance to clinch England’s Premier League title today considering the fact that this same team that barely survived relegation last season defied all odds to stand a fantastic chance to beat the likes of popular heavyweights, Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United etc to stand a chance to win the EPL with two games to spare today, with a combined team worth less than the sign up price of Manchester City's , Kevin De Bruyne.
To say it is an upset or a shock or a stunner seems wholly inadequate, infact many people expected Leicester City to be at the bottom of the English Premier League at the beginning of the season, fighting relegation, and the fact that the exact reverse is happening is just amazing.
Another way to view Leicester City’s unlikely title is through gambling odds. Before this season began, British bookmakers listed Leicester — pronounced Less-ter — as a 5,000-to-1 shot to emerge as the Premier League champion.
Being 5,000 to 1 really put Leicester City more in line with the odds one might see in the novelty category often offered by British bookies — bets on things that are so outlandish and unlikely as to be unimaginable — but even there, Leicester City was a long shot. The odds that Simon Cowell, the acid-tongued producer of “American Idol,” would become the next British prime minister were only 500 to 1, for example, while those that Hugh Hefner, who founded Playboy magazine, would reveal that he was a virgin were set at 1,000 to 1.
For a different context, consider this: Since the Premier League was founded in 1992, only five teams have been crowned champions. Four are financial juggernauts (Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City), and the fifth, Blackburn Rovers, claimed its only title more than 20 years ago, in the Premier League’s third season. But in every instance, the title-winning team had finished no worse than third the year before; Leicester, on the other hand, has a middling payroll (roughly a quarter of Chelsea’s when it won the 2014-15 title) and finished 14th last season, an escape from relegation that is a story (and a soccer miracle) all its own.
But at Leicester, there were no superstar signings, no “big” names, no wonderboy type players, just a group of carefully selected players that play for each other. Their attacking and counter-attacking football is easy on the eye and from having no household names, they now have Vardy, Kante and Mahrez who are now PFA nominees.
It is interesting to note that eight of the players now a part of the successful Foxes team were signed by ex-boss Nigel Pearson. He signed players so shrewdly, that he knew they could hold their own in the Premier League, but not even he could see this fairytale unfolding.
But Claudio Ranieri, who has never won a top-flight title in his 30-year managerial career, built a fantastic team that might just complete that fairytale finish today.
Now they need to hold their nerve. Leicester are fearless, they are at ease and it’s suggested that they are not feeling any pressure, playing with the freedom that wins them games.
The stakes are high for a Leicester side within touching distance of their first-ever top-flight title. Having confounded the world with their performances this season, we all want to know what they've got to do to complete one of the greatest sporting stories of all time.
Leicester City go to the Theatre of dreams today, Old Trafford, the ground that has produced the most EPL trophies in history, home to Manchester United football club.
Spurs have given a decent titile push, but a draw in their last match gave Leicester breathing space with an 8 points gap with 3 games to go.
Now, Spurs need to either win all three of their remaining games, or win two and draw the other, and hope Leicester lose all last 3 matches to stand any chance. Any one defeat means the game is up for them.
However in the case that Leicester fail to defeat Manchester United, a win for them next Saturday evening against Everton still secures the title, so all they need really is just 3 points in 3 matches, and we can be sure that is very realizable for this Leicester team.
Again, Leicester City will be without the influential Vardy, but they have shown that they could do without him with a 4-0 demolition of Swansea in their last match.
Now the question is, do you think Leicester City can win the English Premier League at Old Trafford today? or will Manchester United just have enough firepower to delay the party? Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
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