Leicester City fan and Match of the Day presenter, Gary Lineker, has delivered praise for the job that Enzo Maresca has done on the Rest Is Football Podcast.
After taking over at Leicester in the summer following relegation from the Premier League, many questioned Maresca’s coaching credentials having never managed at this level, however, the Italian has unleashed his tactical expertise onto the rest of the Championship.
In a record-breaking start to the season, the former Manchester City assistant – who uses some of the tactical principles adopted by Pep Guardiola – has constructed Leicester into a well-oiled machine that sits top of the table.
The Foxes have played some wonderful football under Maresca and supporters will have been encouraged by their blistering first-half of the season, including none other than Lineker.
What has Gary Lineker said about Enzo Maresca?
Speaking on the Rest Is Football Podcast, the former Tottenham striker said:
“I think he’s doing a terrific job.
“He was one of Pep’s (Guardiola) graduates you could call him, and he’s done a really good job.
“It is very much a possession-based style of football and we tend to wear a lot of teams down and score a lot of goals late in games. We are playing some good football and it is encouraging that we are top of the table and long may it continue until we are back in the Premier League.”
As highlighted by Lineker, finding a way to win games late-on – like Manchester United did under Sir Alex Ferguson – is the true mark of champions.
Indeed, Leicester have scored in the 90th minute onwards in five matches this season and one of those came on Saturday as Harry Winks tapped the ball home in the 94th minute to seal all three points against West Bromwich Albion.
Can Leicester win the Championship?
Although Leicester have made a record-breaking start to the season with 15 wins from their first 19 games, there is still a long way to go.
Maresca’s side are entering a season-defining period that could determine whether they can blitz the league or crumble under the weight of expectation.
Given they are eight points inside the automatic promotion places with 3rd place Leeds United beginning to mount a challenge, it would take a monumental collapse for Leicester to throw away promotion, but nothing is ever guaranteed in the Championship.
On the evidence of the first half of the season, the Foxes are showing their credentials as champions, however, it will be interesting to see whether the players can match the intense demands set by Maresca across the entire campaign by clinching the title in May.