Leicester City made it eight home losses in a row without scoring as Newcastle United breezed past the Foxes at the King Power Stadium.
A brace from Jacob Murphy and a goal from former Leicester star Harvey Barnes in the first-half was all that was needed for the Magpies to secure a big three points in their bid to secure UEFA Champions League football.
As for Leicester, the result leaves Ruud van Nistelrooy’s side 15 points off Wolves, with relegation looking all-but confirmed after another disastrous and spineless performance at home from the East Midlands side.
Indeed, it was another game to forget for Leicester, yet here are five things we learned from this evening’s defeat against Newcastle.
Leicester fans have completely lost interest in this season
It was telling from the Sky Sports cameras that the first thing that stood out from last night’s game was how few Leicester fans were in attendance at the King Power, with huge chunks of the stadium having patches of empty seats.
With Leicester fans protesting against the board in recent weeks, it’s perhaps no real surprise that supporters have taken to the next step of voicing their anger with the club by simply not turning up to games.
And after Monday’s result and performance, those who chose not to attend at the King Power Stadium might a good call, with Leicester failing to score or put up much of a fight against Newcastle.
Ruud van Nistelrooy needs to make changes to the starting XI
Ruud van Nistelrooy once again named an unchanged Leicester XI, and to the surprise of nobody, the Foxes were once again uninspiring, toothless, and as predictable as they come, all leading to Newcastle claiming an easy win.
With Russell Martin being linked with the Leicester job, Van Nistelrooy’s future in the East Midlands has never looked more uncertain than ever, and fan support for the Dutchman to be sacked will be at an all-time peak after Monday’s result.
And it all comes down to the former Manchester United coach being unwilling to push the boat out with his Leicester XI, with the system in need of a major shake-up if Van Nistelrooy is to make a real change.
Leicester players look to have completely given up
It isn’t just Leicester fans who seem to have given up on the season, but the players as a whole now look like they are done with the 2024/25 campaign and everything that has come up with it.
Leicester’s players today were again uninspiring and lacked any real quality to cause Newcastle problems of any sort, with the Toon playing in second gear and still outplaying their East Midlands hosts.
Indeed, if there was ever a cause for the Leicester board to bring in a manager who was willing to oversee a mass squad overhaul, it will be last night’s loss against Newcastle, where nobody looked up for the occasion.
Harvey Barnes represents everything Leicester are missing right now
Monday’s defeat was made that extra bit painful for Leicester with Barnes scoring on his first return to the King Power Stadium since joining Newcastle in 2023, the year the Foxes were last relegated from the Premier League.
The winger has struggled to become a regular for Newcastle since joining two years ago in large part due to the incredible form of Anthony Gordon, who has made the left-wing position his own at St. James’ Park.
Yet Barnes was impressive for Newcastle tonight, and the attacker’s determination, energy and drive were all factors that Leicester have been missing greatly this season, with not one player having a single trait like that for the Foxes.
Leicester will really struggle to sell players in the summer
The summer is set to be one of the biggest in recent memory for Leicester, with the board having a mission to appoint the right manager as well as make the signings needed that could help the Foxes win the Championship at the first time of asking, again.
Yet last night’s loss against Newcastle showed that Leicester will struggle big time to move on many players in the first-team squad that could with moving on, with way too many names simply not up to scratch for competing in the top-flight.
Indeed, a complete squad overhaul is needed for Leicester this summer, yet actually moving players on will prove to be a challenge with so few proving this season that they could be worth something to another club.