When the full-time whistle blew, the cameras immediately turned to the Leicester City directors and their new appointment in the stands. Chairman Aiyawatt ‘Top’ Srivaddhanaprabha and director of football Jon Rudkin stood glumly while Ruud van Nistelrooy was sat down on his phone, obscured from view. He could not be blamed if he was hiding, so as to avoid association with the 90 minutes he had just watched.
This was not the first time he had seen City in action this season. He twice got a first-hand view at Old Trafford earlier in November. But with his full attention on those in blue this time, it would have been an eye-opener. If he didn’t know it before, it’s now very clear he’s got a big task on his hands.
The job is not just to get the players and the team to a point where they’re at least competitive, but also to give supporters a reason to have hope and to be excited. Right now, it’s an angry fanbase.
At 4-1 down with about 15 minutes to play, and with Brentford knocking the ball about comfortably in City’s half, fury poured out of the away end. The chants came thick and fast.
Without Steve Cooper to blame, there were new targets. Rudkin has often been the focus from the stands in the wake of managerial sackings, with caretaker bosses less liable for poor performances. It’s been over seven years since a ‘Rudkin out’ banner was unfurled at Swansea in the first game after Craig Shakespeare’s departure.
There was a chant of “we want Rudkin out” five minutes in, but it was louder in the latter stages. As the owner’s right-hand man and therefore at the heart of most decisions taken by the club, he is not going to escape criticism. The concern is how far City have fallen.
Brentford have shown what a well-run club looks like. Their progress and City’s demise in recent years means that there was not only a gulf between the two sides on the pitch, but it was not a surprise that there was. City have regressed sharply from where they were three years ago, and fans do not feel that anybody at the top of the club has been held responsible for that.
Fans were also fed up that the trip to the Gtech Community Stadium felt like a wasted game. Supporters have heard there were concerns about the direction under Cooper prior to the Chelsea defeat, and yet it was only after that game, and after a two-week international break, that they decided to sack him.
Van Nistelrooy’s appointment took five days. That’s not slow. But had they made that call during the international break, the new manager would have had a chance to work with the side and there would have been no need to play any fixture under a caretaker.
There were two more chants from the 1,700 away fans. Heard a couple of times during Cooper’s reign, there was another chorus of “this is embarrassing”, seemingly targeting both the players and Ben Dawson and his staff for the showing City were producing.
Then came a chant of “you’re not fit to wear the shirt”. It wasn’t as loud, but represented the first time the supporters had turned on the players this season. There were boos at full-time too when the squad gave a cursory applause of the fans from 20 yards away.
It’s now three games in a row where the desire to get back into a match – evident in the early stages of the season – has not been visible. The viral video from the Christmas party in Copenhagen, while unfortunate timing, only added to the feeling that the players don’t care as much as fans feel they should.
So van Nistelrooy not only has to correct all of the problems on the pitch, he has to completely swing the mood of the fanbase. It’s a huge undertaking.
More defenders does not equal a better defence
So, what will Van Nistelrooy have learned? Principally, that having more defenders on the pitch does not mean City are more defensively solid.
City’s back five saw them concede four for the first time in a Premier League game this term and they now have the second-worst defensive record in the division. In a stinging comment, Brentford boss Thomas Frank said he expected the game to be more difficult than it turned out to be.
While it seemed Dawson had changed the shape to shake things up, he says his decision was made solely with the intention of trying to earn three points. Even when City took the lead, that never looked like happening.
Because in spite of the defensive set-up, City got caught with players upfield for both the second and third Brentford goals. They did not attempt to park the bus. All that happened was that they had more defensive players in attacking positions when they did go forward, leading to a lack of creativity. Brentford then ripped through them on the counter.
Having had just three second-half shots over their previous two matches, despite trailing at half-time in both, City did improve on that front, mustering five efforts in the second period in west London. But only one was from inside the box and none could be considered decent opportunities. They never looked like getting back into the game.
Watching the team be so poor defensively and in attack may convince Van Nistelrooy that he needs to rip things up and start afresh. Exponential improvements are required for City to start picking up results.
Duo in need of Van Nistelrooy's obsession
Back in September, a couple of months after Van Nistelrooy had joined the coaching staff at United, former City captain Jonny Evans spoke of how the Dutchman is obsessed with defensive structure. It was good to hear.
That should form much of his early work. Because if James Justin and Wout Faes are going to continue in the 11, they need to be taught how to play together.
They are not bad players. Both have produced very good performances in the Premier League and/or at international level. But they appear to have little understanding of where to be in reference to the other. There’s no connection nor seemingly any communication between them.
Kevin Schade of Brentford scores his team's third goal as Mads Hermansen of Leicester City fails to make a save and Wout Faes of Leicester City fails to block the shot
Kevin Schade of Brentford scores his team's third goal as Wout Faes of Leicester City fails to block the shot (Image: Getty Images)
That contributed to three of Brentford’s four goals. The Bees’ third was perhaps the worst of the bunch. It’s not either player’s fault that Mikkel Damsgaard was given so much space 20 yards out to pick a pass, but Faes was sat too deep, playing Kevin Schade onside, who then scored from a position where Justin might be expected to be. They either need to both drop or both step out.
The fourth Brentford goal was bad too. Faes moved to try to close the space for a pass through the middle, choosing instead to give Schade more room, if he even knew he was behind him. If Faes is trying to close the space, then Justin has to get across to cover the man. Otherwise Faes has to stick by the attacker. Again, wires were crossed and Brentford profited.
Finding the connection between them is vital. A defence has to be a unit. It sounds like something van Nistelrooy will be very keen to work on, and it’s a good job.
Players have to be on their toes ahead of January
Watching the game alongside the two people who will sanction funds and negotiate deals, Van Nistelrooy may have a word or two in their ear about transfers. But, there’s not likely to be much money to work with and so only one or two areas can be looked at.
As Van Nistelrooy mentioned in his announcement interview, City do have a balanced squad. There are a couple options in every area of the pitch, although maybe not at right-back now that Ricardo Pereira is out until March.
So the January transfer window won’t be a case of filling gaps. It’s about improving the team. But when a side is performing poorly in so many areas of the pitch, it’s difficult to know where the priority is.
In that case, it should keep every player on their toes. Anybody’s place could be under threat. They have a month to impress the new manager enough to avoid their spot in the team being picked out as an area for improvement.
Excitement evaporates ahead of must-win match
Two days of training for a new manager to prepare for their first fixture is limited. It does not feel like van Nistelrooy will be able to do too much to put his plans in place for West Ham on Tuesday night.
And it’s a huge game. Home matches against bottom-half sides will determine whether City stay up. It really needs to be a winning start for the new manager.
One problem he now has is that the performance against Brentford was so poor that the excitement around his appointment has now evaporated. The raucous atmosphere that City need, and that may have developed on Tuesday night, now feels less likely to materialise. There’s such a short supply of hope at the moment.
But it means there’s essentially a blank slate for van Nistelrooy to work with. Any improvements he can draw out of the team in 48 hours will be welcomed. Good luck.
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