Leicester City suffered a 3-1 defeat to Leeds United on Friday evening and they were without their top scorer Jamie Vardy.
The veteran forward was absent from the squad to the surprise of many Foxes fans but Enzo Maresca later confirmed that he had sustained an injury.
“Unfortunately during yesterday’s (Thursday’s) training session he had a muscle problem,” Maresca told Sky Sports, via Leicestershire Live. “So he will be out for I don’t know how long, but he will be out.”
Vardy’s absence against Leeds was even more evident when Patson Daka squandered a one on one to put his side 2-0 up.
Despite turning 37 in January, the 2019/20 Premier League Golden Boot winner has shown little signs of slowing down and is still the most prolific forward at the club.
Enzo Maresca must find a solution
Maresca must find a solution up front to combat his side’s profligate nature, with Vardy set to be sidelined for the foreseeable future.
The East Midlanders have the second worst conversion rate in the Premier League behind play-off hopefuls Preston North End.
Leicester missed several big chances in the defeats to Leeds and Middlesborough, so perhaps it’s time to turn towards other options in attack.
Tom Cannon has looked sharp in the little game time he’s had but maybe a more experienced head in Kelechi Iheanacho could be the answer to Maresca’s problems.
Kelechi Iheanacho deserves a run in the side
With Vardy out, Daka misfiring and Cannon still in the early stages of his fledgling career, Iheanacho seems to be the sensible solution up front heading into City’s games against Bournemouth and Queens Park Rangers.
The Nigeria international hasn’t started a Championship fixture since the start of December, partly due to Daka’s form but also the Africa Cup of Nations.
In his 10 starts this term, Iheanacho has netted five goals whilst laying on one assist, which is a pretty decent goalscoring ratio by all accounts.
The left-footed forward has a different profile to his striking competitors as he naturally likes to drop deep and create from the number 10 role.
With that said, it could allow the likes of Stephy Mavididi and Abdul Fatatwu more room to make darting runs inside and on the shoulder of the last man.
Iheanacho may not have the most prolific goal return this season, but he could be a great facilitator for others to flourish.