GoalKeepers
Kasper - ever present, great shot stopper, great experience, inconsistent kicker, poor for crosses and control of 6 yd box. It's hard to complain about a guy that can pull off spectacular saves but I've always disliked his inability to deal with the ball in the 6yd area and he makes every corner a worry. He'll stay until he retires and he'll retire a Leicester "Legend" but I don't rate him as high as some do.
Danny Ward - came in as a very expensive back-up but has never had a chance to play, with Kasper being indestructible. Gets to appear in some Cup matches. Wouldn't frighten me to have him start.
Eldin Jakupovic - seemed very poor on the occasions that he has had game time an for the U23s, I have no idea why we'd consider re-signing him but I haven't heard that he's been released.
Others - we have some very very good young Goalkeepers - at least 3 that I've seen. it's a very strong area for us which needs to be exploited more.
Defenders
James Justin - What a season he was having before his injury. possibly our player of the season up to that point and was already knocking on the door of an England call up. The injury was cruel and will take some time to recover from. Won't play until Christmas but if Ricardo is anything to go by he won't be up to his level at all next season.
Wesley Fofana - a young lad expecting to slowly acclimatise to the prem and a foreign country was thrown straight in due to injuries and what a player he is. If he doesn't play for France in the next World Cup I'll be surprised. Possibly the buy of the season in the Prem.
Caglar Soyuncu Is a very good defender but can sometimes be a little brash and is prone to the odd mistake which rocks his confidence a little. He had an outstanding season replacing Maguire last year and was almost as good this season. Playing next to Jonny is sure to make him even better as he matures.
Jonny Evans - Having heard how good our other 2 CBs are it may be surprising to think that this old man still stole the show. His experience and leadership was so important and we missed him badly when he was injured (including those 2 crucial final games). He doesn't have the natural talent of the other two but his understanding of the game and leadership make him a Leicester defensive hero.
Wes Morgan - Captain Morgan is retiring. Great leadership over the last decade but his back just can't take it anymore. Played a few times and again put his heart on the line every time. finished by seeing out the last 10 minutes and lifting the FA Cup. Thanks for the memories Wes.
Daniel Amartey - he's a utility player who would be a starter in a lower mid table team. He heads well and generally has a good game but not the speed of though , control and pass that is needed for a top prem team. He had to play too often this season and he did he best. the type of player it's good to have on the bench but you hope you never need to use.
Ricardo Pereira - He was probably our best player before his injury last season but he hasn't yet recovered fully. He played a fair amount because we were in desperate need but he's the first to admit that he game hasn't reached its former level. Hopefully after a break and a pre-season he'll be back to terrorising defences as the RWB.
Timothy Castagne - he had an awesome start to his Leicester Career and then got injured. since his return he has had to play all over the field RWB, LWB, RB, LB, CB. He's been good everywhere but not at the same level he was playing RWB opposite Justin James. A fantastic purchase and a great first season.
Christian Fuchs - Fuuuuuchs has now retired. Adding the FA Cup to his Prem League title. He had to play a lot early in the season and mostly out of position as a CB but he filled in valiantly despite his legs not being what they were. He has a great football brain and will be missed. Good luck for the future.
Luke Thomas - the Leicester academy just keep churning them out. Luke was born in a village on the edge of Leicester (about 3 miles from where I was born) and he was thrown into the team at 19 because of all the injuries. what a season he had! Sure there were a few mistakes along the way, which he'll learn from, but he finished with that cool goal against Man U and then lifted the FA Cup. It'll be hard for him to keep his place when all our defenders are fit but I'm sure he'll fight for his place. he can be proud of his season.
Others - Devontae Campbell had a good debut at LWB this season and we have Josh Knight who did well on loan but I think we definitely need another top CB being as we seem to want to play 3 at the back and with JJ still out for a while we may look at another Wing back.
Midfielders
Youri Tielemans - Youri came into his own this season, he played almost every second of every match and he just got better and better. His understanding of the game is incredible, his vision is perfect. He can pass and he can score. I would think he'll be Vice-Captain next year with the view of making him Captain in a couple of seasons and tying him up for life. Outstanding season and gets the Player of the season in a very talented field.
James Maddison - He can be truly amazing and when he's on song there are none better but this season was blighted by injury both early, mid and late and it totally disrupted his flow. I think he'll be disappointed and partially blame himself for us missing out on CL. Teams will be interested in picking him up and it's possible his head will be turned by a top team but probably not until he's over his injuries. I hope he stays long term but if I had to choose 1 of our 3 main CMs to go he'd be the one. He doesn't have the defensive desire that the other two have, nor the pressing brain that we need. Good season but can be much better.
Wilfred N'Didi - This man is amazing and could easily have been player of the season. His passion and hunger are incredible. his defensive prowess is elite and yet he was flexible enough to switch into our back line many times whilst also delivering goal opening forward passes. I honestly believe he is the best defensive destroyer in the game at the moment, even better than Kanté and he adds the height that we need to help defend corners. his biggest improvement this season is his first touch and his quick passing. If next season he learns how to shoot on target he'll be the first £200m footballer.
Marc Albrighton - What can we say about Marc? Every manager who comes in immediately drops him and then after a few weeks re-instates him. He doesn't have the elite game of any of the others but he has the biggest heart. He will chase anything down, he'll bang in a fast and early cross and he'll make an effort to smack in a few unstoppable goals. When his pressing game is on he is great and his help in defence for our WBs is important. Sadly he isn't really of top 5 standard but I guess a Prem title and Fa Cup may question that. always underrated but he's still going and I think he'll still be going throughout next season. Wonderful back up.
Cengiz Under - He looked like a little wizard early in the season and we all had hopes that after acclimatising he'd be the Mahrez replacement to complete our team on the right wing. That never happened. I think it was probably his inability to understand the defensive job required playing for us (something Mahrez didn't understand either) but whatever the reason he disappeared completely and will now be back in Roma (though rumours are that Arsenal is interested). We've done well with purchases recently and this was a fail but only a loan fail.
Hamza Choudhury - I love this lad. another Academy player born in the north of Leicestershire (perhaps 7 miles from me). He is an elite pressing midfielder and a ferocious and clever tackler who has been unlucky to see N'Didi replace Kanté in what would be his natural position. I beg that we don't sell him but I can see teams queuing up for him. He'd be ideal for Klopp with Liverpool or Bielsa at Leeds but it seems that Bruce and Newcastle want him the most. I'd be up for giving him a loan period but I hope we don't sell. Often used at the end of games when we need to press and defend.
Papy Mendy - Another clever and good defensive midfielder. He can defend and he can pass, he has a good football brain and he came in early in the season when we were in dire straits defensively through injury. Sadly he is just too small for our style of play. We need the size of N'Didi as CDM because of our frailty at set pieces. Papy is a good player who would grace a mid table team with honour but he's probably not what we need at the moment.
Dennis Praet - Dennis is a great utility midfielder who has lost out again through injury in the second half of the season. I must admit to being astonished that he wasn't chosen over Perez over the last month or two and don't understand Brendan's thinking there. I think that Dennis will be looking at starting opportunities away from Leicester but personally I hope he stays. He does everything well and can certainly be a threat in the opposition box from midfield.
Harvey Barnes - Another academy product who took the league by storm before a cruel injury this season. He was truly terrifying for opposition defences and could absolutely skin anyone. The big progress he made this season was the calmness he developed in front of goal to the extent that I expected him to score every game. even before Vardy's drought he had become our most dangerous goal scorer. The injury was a disaster and stopped him making the England squad but it also stopped him being poached by Barcelona. yes he was looking that good! He should be back for the start of the season and let's hope he continues from where he left off.
Others - We have a couple of really good academy prospects ready to break in to the first team. KDH had a glorious season on loan at Luton and looks like a replacement for Maddison should he move on, Tavares and Leshabella should be making the bench. I can see us picking up a tall CDM to back-up Wilf this off-season and I'm sure we'll have our eyes on star Ams but I don't think we need one. When fit I think we have the best midfield in the league
Forwards
Jamie Vardy - He is a living legend and no-one can say too much about him. I know the media was going on and on about his "goal drought" but even when he wasn't scoring (and he did have confidence problems after his injury which he came back from very very quickly and played through) he was creating for others with his movement, his threat and his passing. He is so intelligent from a football point of view. I have been blessed to watch him play for us. He is and was over used and his body cannot stand playing 2 games a week every week. It really needs to play a maximum of a match each week but his heart beats his body every match. He really is a rough jewel. He still has 2 or 3 good years in him but he does need to have his playing time better managed and our reliance on him reduced.
Kelechi Iheanacho - I never understood the lack of game time Kels got over the years. He has shown (mostly in Cup matches) that he is a natural goal scorer. His problem was that Leicester seemed intent on playing with just one attacker who had to be fast. Thankfully the injuries (and Vardy's form) forced Brendan into playing two up front and what a revelation it was for the rest of the league. Kelechi has a football brain, great control and a killer goal instinct. His scoring has been incredible and there is no reason he can't continue for years alongside Vardy and Harvey. Fantastic season Kelechi.
Ayoze Perez - Utter disaster. completely rubbish. I cannot see what Brendan thinks this guy brings to the team. He doesn't score, doesn't assist, can't close down, doesn't/can't defend. He can sometimes hold a ball and then dribble but all he does is keep dribbling and beating players until he loses the ball. Yet he has played so much for us in front of players who can do so much more. Yes he was Brendan's first and biggest purchase but he has been so bad. It got to the stage that if I saw he was starting I expected us to lose and if he came on as sub I knew that we'd concede. I so badly want him sold this off-season but that isn't going to happen. I never want to see him playing in a Leicester City shirt again.
Others- Well this is the problem we really don't have anyone. there are a couple of youngsters who may come through in time but nothing for this season. A striker and a RW are very badly needed.
So there it is. long, yes, insightful, I hope.
In my opinion we have a great little squad which needs added depth.
Right Wing is our biggest hole, a striker to ease the burden on Vardy is required, another top CB - since we play three at the back and a tall CDM to give Wilf a break are the four priorities this off-season. Let's see what happens. If we get those and have reasonable luck with injuries this year's historic season could even be bettered next year.
Top 5
and a Europa Cup trophy!
