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WE ARE ALMOST THERE.
Three points away from making history. And we have three games to do it.
As Leicester City fans, we have been privileged to witness and be part of the greatest season in the club's long history.
Largely, the season has been one big success story. However, the ride has been nail-biting, tense, at times almost unwatchable for those who hold the fortunes of the club dear to their heart. As always happens over a season of 38 matches, there have been games, or moments in games, which with the benefit of hindsight can be highlighted as "turning points" or "critical moments".
I've picked out some of the biggest milestones of the season, as I see them, to this point.
August, 8th 2015 - Leicester City 4-2 Sunderland
The first game of the new season, and the first competitive game for the new manager. On that basis I can't really call it a "turning point". However, the importance of the result, and the performance, on the opening day, are hard to understate.
Cast your mind back to the widespread feeling of disenchantment at the Ranieri appointment. Yes, as he emerged from the tunnel he was greeted with applause and cheers. With characteristic dignity he acknowledged that, but one sensed that the positive vibes seemed mostly to be normal "new season optimism"; welcoming the new manager was a secondary thought. The fans were still unsure that this guy could do anything better than what Nigel Pearson had achieved the season before. Would he come in and change everything - for the worse? Anything less than a win against perennial strugglers Sunderland would pour fuel on a smoldering fire of doubt.
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Instead, Leicester were 3-0 up after only 25 minutes, with goals from fan favorites Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez. The final score was 4-2. It was a resounding victory which gave the team second place in the table - as good a start as anyone could wish for - and, most importantly, it warmed the hearts of the fans to the new manager right from the beginning.
September 13th, 2015 - Leicester City 3-2 Aston Villa
Leicester had done well up until this point - two wins and two draws saw them occupying third place in the early table. Midlands rivals Aston Villa went 2-0 up with two excellent goals. With 20 minutes left, 2-0 down at home, the bubble looked like it was going to burst. Most teams might have given up. But Leicester did not. Nathan Dyer's last minute winner (after goals from De Laet and Vardy) turned the match on its head and dispelled any thoughts of "bursting bubbles" from the media. The nature of the comeback was a clue of what was to come for the rest of the season - team spirit, hard work, and "Foxes Never Quit" attitude. And by the way, it was 3 more points in the bag.
13 January 2016 - Tottenham Hotspur 0-1 Leicester City
Leicester had enjoyed an excellent first half of the season, but the Christmas and New Year period provided slim pickings for the Foxes. They did not score a league goal in three successive games, losing on Boxing Day to Liverpool, and drawing 0-0 twice.
The third round of the FA Cup provided something of a distraction - yielding a 2-2 draw away at Tottenham just 3 days before playing in the league... away at Tottenham again. A sense of injustice from the cup game (a questionable handball decision in the 89th minute) perhaps inspired the players to get a result in the league game.
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It was a top-of-the-table "6-pointer" and a third cagey 0-0 result looked likely - that is, until Robert Huth's header after 83 minutes ensured that Leicester would take the three points from White Hart Lane. It felt important at the time, because Leicester were back to winning ways. Given the subsequent unfolding of the season, in which Spurs have snapped incessantly at the Foxes' heels, it looks likely to be a crucial and decisive result in the final reckoning. At time of writing, the gap is 7 points. If this result had gone the other way, it would only be 1!
February 6th, 2016 - Manchester City 1-3 Leicester City
Perhaps the biggest statement of the season occurred at the Etihad Stadium. Leicester took the lead after just three minutes, following it up with a classy second half goal from Riyad Mahrez, and a towering header from Huth (again) to make it 3-0 after 60 minutes. As commentator Peter Drury said, "They're not just BEATING the richest club in the land... they're RIPPING THEM UP - on their own patch! Why SHOULDN'T they be champions?"
It felt like a watershed moment. After 25 games - two-thirds of the season - Leicester moved five points clear at the top of the table, and they had made mighty Manchester City look distinctly ordinary. Suddenly, it seemed, everyone believed that "They might just do this, y'know!
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27 February 2016 - Leicester City 1-0 Norwich City
Leicester had been brought back down to earth somewhat, after the euphoria of the Manchester City win, with a heartbreaking 95th minute defeat at Arsenal. The question suddenly became "Could they bounce back?". Tottenham, in second place, had closed the gap to just 2 points. The game against Norwich, at the King Power stadium, was a tense, twitchy affair, until Leicester grabbed a last minute winner of their own.
Leonardo Ulloa's 89th minute stab home at the far post from Marc Albrighton's cross provided such relief, such release of tension, such joyous celebration, that the reverberations from the stadium actually registered as a minor earthquake on seismographs in the nearby university. It was a very important three points as it kept Leicester at the top of the table - but even more than that, it rekindled the belief in fans and media pundits that Leicester and their title challenge were not going away any time soon.
April 27th, 2016 - Right Now
As we approach the final 3 games of the season, Leicester are so close to lifting the trophy that they can almost "smell the silver polish". A visit to Old Trafford is scheduled for Sunday, May 1st. With a win, Leicester City will be crowned Premier League Champions.
Even if they fail to secure the title against Manchester United, there are still two games left after that.
WE ARE ALMOST THERE.
Three points away from making history. And we have three games to do it.