Leicester have uncomplicated football and stuck a finger up the nostril of those who think it’s only about talent
I expect there will be a lot of books read and psychology studied over the summer as their rivals try to understand just how Leicester City have achieved a truly once-in-a-lifetime success.
Every other manager will be casting envious glances at the new Premier League champions and reflecting to themselves: “I wish we had that never-say-die team spirit.”
Claudio Ranieri was fortunate to inherit a dressing room which already had that almost unbreakable sense of togetherness, forged in their successful fight against relegation last year.
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He also took over a side with no shortage of talent, and then applied some basic football principles, such as an Italian emphasis on protecting the defence and eliminating opponents’ attacking space.
Bruised souls
They would have understood that their initial target was merely to stay in the top flight, only to then realise that other teams were not as focused as they were. Soon they were surprising themselves.
Ranieri would probably not have expected it either but, at 64 and with another stint in England behind him, had the experience to keep a lid on a pot that was steadily boiling.
What’s incredible about Leicester is that they are bruised souls: Jamie Vardy had to fight his way up from non-league; Riyad Mahrez was plucked from the French second tier; Robert Huth was sold by Stoke.
None of them thought they would be stars at Leicester; their only focus was on the greater good. The hullaballoo of today’s money-driven football world has exposed the prima-donna attitude of some overpaid players who are at clubs for the wrong reasons; Ranieri’s team are the opposite.
Ammunition
I suspect some managers think players are too powerful now. Leicester, as an example of a team being more important than the individual, have given those coaches ammunition to fight back.
Graeme Souness, my team-mate at Rangers, would always say before a game: “You’re miles better than them. But if you don’t compete 100 per cent – running and battling – then they’ll beat you.”
There is only one reason to play football at the top level: to win. And even the best players have to demonstrate that hunger every time they take the field.
Finger up the nostril
Footballers find too many excuses and Leicester have put a finger up the nostril of players who think it’s easy to earn loads of money. They have sneaked up on those who think it is only about talent.
Really, it is about nothing more than heart and soul. And in that sense Ranieri and his men have uncomplicated football.
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Buying into what you do is everything. You absolutely have to be committed. It’s painful to do it that way, but you only have to look at Leicester and Tottenham to see that it works.
Those two teams are the only teams to show heart this season – and they’re the two to come out on top. That’s the message for every other manager: mentality is everything. And they all have to get that.