Seven years after their extraordinary Premier League triumph, Leicester City have failed to retain their top-flight status and will play in the English second tier for the first time in nine years.
There were feares their campaign may have a disastrous end, especially after an ominous start when they picked up just one win from their opening ten games (D1, L8).
There will be countless opinions about why Leicester’s campaign has ended in anguish, but they need to set aside their heartbreak and plot a quick revival starting next season.
Here’s Leicester City’s 2022/23 season review.
Player of the Year: James Maddison
No surprises here given his contributions to the side this season. James Maddison has been nothing short of exceptional for the insipid Foxes, bagging ten goals and nine assists.
However, it would be unfair to Harvey Barnes and Kelechi Iheanacho to say he single-handedly carried the club on his back.
Both players played their part in the futile fight against relegation, with Barnes finishing as the club’s top scorer netting 13 times, while Iheanacho also notched five goals and five assists.
Maddison would have preferred a more joyous occasion to bid farewell to the Foxes supporters, with the highly sought-after midfielder poised to exit King Power Stadium this summer.
Performance of the season
Despite the overall disappointment of the season, the Brendan Rodgers regime served up a couple of wins that gave the Leicester faithful something to cheer about – not least the 4-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur in February.
It came at a time when it seemed the Foxes were building a head of steam that promised to turn their campaign around after embarking on a three-match unbeaten streak (W2, D1).
However, that brief burst of optimism was shortlived in their next fixture, and they picked up just two wins from the next 16 games (D4, L12).
Disappointment of the season
Leicester had established themselves as a Premier League club, going toe to toe with the top teams for the biggest prizes, so it is difficult to pinpoint where it all went wrong.
Rodgers was made a scapegoat, with his tactics were not always easy on the eye, but the Northern Irish manager was forced to make lemonade from lemons, yet he rewarded the club with FA Cup success.
Leicester have struggled with recruitment over the years, especially this season, with the club signing just four players over the two transfer windows.
There will always be a difference of opinion on their sudden fall from grace, but Leicester have been made to pay for papering over the cracks for far too long.
What do the stats say?
Leicester have been relegated from the top flight for the first time since 2003/04 after finishing 18th in the Premier League table.
It is also the first time they have finished in the bottom half of the table since the 2016/17 campaign (12th).
They accumulated 34 points (W9, D7, L22) – their lowest since 2004, although not even in that relegation campaign did they lose 22 top-flight games.
Leicester created 60 big chances (2.0 per match) and scored 51 goals (1.3) – their lowest since 2018/19, although it could have been more considering they hit the woodwork 13 times.
However, they paid the price for a dire defensive record after conceding 68 goals (1.8 per match) – only four teams conceded more, but they managed seven clean sheets in a campaign littered with goals.
Verdict
Leicester made a raucous return to the top flight after winning the Premier League title in just their sophomore year in the division.
They finished in the top half of the table five times, won the FA Cup, reached the Champions League quarter-final, and also made it to the Europa League knockout stages.
They have enriched their top-flight history in leaps and bounds but will now contemplate a season that saw everything they had built fall apart in a whimper.
The hustle and bustle of the Championship will welcome them with open arms. It is up to Leicester to play their cards right and secure a swift return to the Premier League.
Read Next
See all Premier League 2022/23: Team-by-team season reviews.
