Away form key to destiny of Premier season

Few teams on the planet surprised and delighted their followers more than Leicester City did during 2015.

After looking racing certainties during the first quarter of the year for a return to lower-league football, the Foxes mounted a miraculous recovery to pull out of the Premier League relegation zone, and ended the season in a comfortable 14th place.

However, after a turbulent summer which saw the departures of both manager Nigel Pearson and influential midfielder Esteban Cambiasso, another season of struggle was widely forecast.

Instead, though, the installation of veteran Italian manager Claudio Ranieri (pictured above) into the King Power Stadium hotseat has seen City enjoy what to date has been their most successful season in generations.

At the halfway stage, the club are in second place, trailing leaders Arsenal only on goal difference and well ahead of former champions Manchester United and troubled current title-holders Chelsea.  With six wins on their travels to date, City – for the first time in Premier history – boast the best away record in the league.

Many fans, who previously would have settled for a season of solid mid-table consolidation are now dreaming of a place in next season’s Champions League.  Some are even entertaining the notion that 2016 may be the year Leicester lands its first ever top-flight title.

The experienced and astute Ranieri has taken great care not to give any sustenance whatsoever to such fantasies.  He has insisted that his squad takes each game as it comes, and focuses primarily on securing Premier status for next season.

With 39 points already banked – just 2 short of the total achieved for the whole previous campaign – that mission can now be regarded as being safely accomplished.

The question is now whether the side can continue the momentum that it has built up in the past few months.

As the transfer window reopens, Ranieri faces the dilemma of how to add to the current quality and depth within his squad without threatening the team spirit which has played such an important role in progress during the past year.

While the club’s ambitious owners will make funding readily available, Ranieri’s spending power is unlikely to match that of his direct competitors.  But the scouting network at his disposal,  which has unearthed so many comparative bargains in recent years – such as Jamie Vardy, Riyad Mahrez and N’Golo Kante – can be trusted to deliver for the club once more.

The most significant challenges are likely to come during the next six weeks, when the Foxes are due to visit all three of their closest rivals for the Premier crown.

The outcome of the trips to White Hart Lane, the Etihad and the Emirates may well be paramount in determining that of City’s season in general.

Ranieri may be tempted to succumb to the pragmatic, cautious instincts that afflict so many of his managerial contemporaries and which have been prevalent for many years within the top levels of the game in his homeland.

That course of action, though, would not be in the best interests of either manager or club.  Throughout his tenure – and that of the closing months of his predecessor – City have gained plaudits as well as points by their bold, positive approach, and the players are evidently most comfortable with it.

Many factors, such as injuries, suspensions or the impact of cup competitions, may also influence the remaining months of the season.

But there is every reason to anticipate that the Foxes – even if they fall short of the ultimate prize – will record achievements during the coming year which will not only confirm their position as a genuine top-flight force, but will be remembered with awe for generations to come.