Leicester City were knocked out of the FA Cup by Manchester United in acrimonious circumstances on Friday night.
Despite taking a lead through Bobby De Cordova Reid just before half-time, Man United rallied in the second half through Joshua Zirkzee and Harry Maguire to knock Leicester out of the competition.
Leicester fans were angered by Maguire’s goal, which was clearly offside, as fans questioned why VAR wasn’t in the FA Cup till the fifth round.
Maguire’s controversial 93rd minute winner stole the headlines, in what was another frustrating night for Ruud van Nistelrooy however, there were some positives to take.
Wilfred Ndidi impressed for Leicester on his return to the side while centre-back Caleb Okoli produced an outstanding performance, resulting in calls for him to keep his place.
Jannik Vestergaard is the weak link in Leicester’s squad
Okoli was linked with a transfer out of Leicester throughout the window. But to the surprise of many, he remained at the King Power Stadium and made his first start under Van Nistelrooy.
Having not had a fair shot of regular football since the Dutchman took charge, the 23-year-old proved why that was a mistake with some fine defensive play, including a miraculous goal-line clearance.
Okoli replaced Jannik Vestergaard in the lineup, who dropped out of the starting lineup with a slight injury issue, according to journalist Rob Tanner.
But, some would suspect the towering Dane deserved to lose his place in the side anyway. Vestergaard was woeful in the 4-0 loss to Everton last weekend as Leicester were carved open at will.
In truth, the 32-year-old hasn’t been good enough all season, with most teams exposing his lack of pace and mobility.
Leicester looked a lot more solid with the mobility and agility of Okoli in the heart of their defence instead of Vestergaard, and Van Nistelrooy must keep the Italian in the side against Arsenal.
Leicester should sell Vestergaard in the summer
Although Vestergaard was vital in Leicester’s Championship title-winning campaign last term, his worrying poor physical attributes have been exploited.
As a result, Van Nistelrooy should cash in on the experienced centre-back in the summer, which would free up some much-needed wages.
Vestergaard currently earns £60k-a-week, making him the eighth-highest earner in the squad.
Given he’s approaching the twilight years of his career and showing huge signs of decline, cashing in on Denmark International is the best option.