Leicester City boss Claude Puel may be feeling the pressure over the festive period.
The Foxes have won just two of their last 10 games in the Premier League and despite being tough to beat, Leicester have increasingly looked devoid of a plan in recent games.
They started slowly in their 1-0 defeat at Crystal Palace on Saturday, and Puel lamented their sluggish first half when speaking to the BBC after the game.
“I think we did not start the game with the right intensity. We played a poor first half, it was not enough. We came back in the second half with a good intensity and quality. We had three or four chances to come back into the game. I think we deserved to come back but it is a big disappointment because we need the points,” Puel said. “We were unlucky at the end but we lost three points. It is important to correct this and to play a consistent game from the start until the end.”
The Frenchman is the third favorite with the bookmakers to bet the next PL manager to lose his job, and unless they grab miraculous wins against Chelsea and Man City in their next two league games then Puel will be feeling the pressure between now and January.
Off the pitch Leicester have been through a tough time in recent months after the tragic helicopter crash outside of the King Power Stadium which took the life of their owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha. On the pitch Puel’s plan to dominate possession and try to create openings just doesn’t seem to be suiting the squad they have and Leiceeter’s regression is clear.
The likes of Jamie Vardy, Demarai Gray and James Maddison looked at their best in the second half on Saturday when they hit the Eagles on the counter again and again, but it didn’t happen often enough and these players seem a little unsure of what they are supposed to be doing.
Counter-attacking isn’t the style Puel prefers and it seems increasingly likely that the Foxes will turn elsewhere between now and the end of the season in terms of their manager. Puel steadied the ship last season as they finished in ninth place, but there has been no real progress over the past 12 months for the Foxes.
If they keep Puel in charge they probably won’t go down with 22 points already on the board, but long-term it is clear Puel is under pressure to remain at Leicester.
