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Leicester facing exodus as Riyad Mahrez, Danny Drinkwater and Islam Slimani edge towards exit
The final few days of August are likely to be pivotal for Leicester City’s season, with manager Craig Shakespeare acknowledging that Riyad Mahrez, Danny Drinkwater and Islam Slimani may yet leave before Thursday’s transfer deadline.
Shakespeare can ill afford to lose them as he attempts to build on the momentum he achieved after replacing Claudio Ranieri in February. Leicester have managed to resist Roma’s attempts to sign Mahrez, who wishes to leave in search of Champions League football.
That is the temptation on offer, too, for midfielder Drinkwater, wanted by Chelsea, and striker Slimani, a target for French champions Monaco.
“It’s difficult to say what will happen because I’m not sure what other clubs will do,” said the Leicester manager.
He would certainly hope that Drinkwater, yet to play this season because of a groin injury, is not lining up in a Chelsea shirt when they visit the King Power Stadium a week on Saturday.
There is at least one reason for Leicester optimism – the impressive performances of Harry Maguire, who kept Romelu Lukaku quiet during the Foxes' 2-0 defeat Manchester United on Saturday, before he joins up with England.
It was not Lukaku’s day; his penalty was saved by Kasper Schmeichel in the eighth minute of the second half, and the Belgium international also lifted a shot wildly over the bar with just about the last kick of the match.
Schmeichel’s stop earned him a curious record: he has now saved more penalties in the league at Old Trafford than his father Peter, the former United great.
The Leicester goalkeeper, along with his defenders, should have reacted more quickly to prevent Marcus Rashford diverting in Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s corner with 20 minutes remaining.
Up until that point, it had looked as if Jose Mourinho’s side might have been falling into the bad habits of last season, when points were dropped in a total of 15 league draws, 10 of them at Old Trafford.
As it turned out, there was no need to worry, on a day when the manager’s substitutions proved inspired as United maintained their 100 per cent start to the season.
Rashford had scored within three minutes of coming on, and the other two replacements combined for the second goal, with Marouane Fellaini diverting in Jesse Lingard’s cross-shot as Leicester appealed in vain for offside. After starting the season with two 4-0 victories, United proved their effectiveness at wearing down opponents to fashion a win.
“There are going to be teams that defend for 90 minutes, and there are teams that are going to play on the counter-attack or go route one, but we are going to be ready for it,” said midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan. While United are the Premier League’s leading goalscorers, they also have the meanest defence, thanks largely to the fine form of Phil Jones and Eric Bailly in the centre, who did much on Saturday to silence Jamie Vardy.
Jones’ six-year career to date at Old Trafford has been the definition of stop-start, with injuries thwarting his progress and his attempts to justify former manager Sir Alex Ferguson’s claim that he could be the greatest player in United’s history.
Mourinho suggested that Jones could be his ideal centre-back if he stayed fit, then revealed that the England defender had picked up an ankle injury.
“He’s potentially a very good player,” Mourinho said.
“He’s still young. He’s still at a learning age. But for years he was injury prone.
“If we manage to have him safe and protected from injuries, I think potentially, he’s everything I like in a central defender.”