Premier League Player Ratings: Leicester City 0-0 Middlesbrough

Other than an exciting signing, Leicester City did not get off to a flying start to the year, with a scoreless draw against Middlesbrough.

We played better than them today - Boro boss Aitor Karaoke is another believer that the team with the most possession deserves to win

The assumption that any low scoring game must have been boring has always annoyed me. That said, this game was really really dull. Both teams were well set up defensively and played well at the back, but were inept at the other end. Middlesbrough were particularly wasteful and a good side would have beaten us.

Kasper Schmeichel - 6

He didn’t do anything wrong and always seemed to been top of things, but I can't give him a 7 when the opposition managed one weak shot on target.

Danny Simpson - 7

Typical solid Danny. I hate how boring he makes this bit. Please replace with Ritchie de Laet, Claudio.

Wes Morgan - 6

Hard to overlook that ugly attempted clearance that put the game on a plate for Gaston Ramirez. The striker wasn’t able to take advantage, but it was bad. His other 94.5 minutes were pretty good though.

There were some tired legs out there but, on reflection, a nil-nil is a good point for us and a clean sheet is always positive - a defender would enjoy this game, I suppose

Robert Huth - 8

The cross comes in, Huth heads it away. It’s monotonous and I’m not even sure why other teams try it at this point. When the team does its job and forces them out wide, he’s very hard to beat.

Christian Fuchs - 6

At this point, Fuchs is still a much better pure defender than Chilwell. He’s not as fast though and he clearly didn’t have the quickness to deal with Adama Traoré. If the winger had any end product, things would have been ugly.

Nampalys Mendy - 6

You can see he’s more comfortable on the ball than the others; he doesn't need as much time and he makes his passes more often. He still looked a little off the pace though. He wasn't getting on the ball enough and his defensive work was lacking to play at the base of the diamond.

Andy King - 7

I struggle to give anyone more than a 7 after a game like that, but this was the good King. Maybe it was the 3 man midfield that made the difference, but with less ground to cover his defensive work was great and he had more shots on target than Middlesbrough.

Daniel Amartey - 6

He’s improving, no doubt. The defensive side of his game is up to scratch and he’s got the work ethic to fit the team. Unfortunately, the word that comes to mind for his ball skills right now is bad.

Shinji Okazaki - 5

Boro RB Anonio Barragán had as many touches as Shinji. He also came off after 33 minutes.

Leo Ulloa - 6

The big man has exactly the opposite problem as his partner. He was always on the ball (he lead the team in touches), but was never the player we needed there. He’s not a link up man, he can't run in behind and that was what he was asked to do. Get him in the box, aim at his head, that’s the only plan that works.

Riyad Mahrez - 7

He’s tantalisingly close to being dangerous again, you can feel it. He’s got that look about him when he picks it up ad heads for goal, but its just not quite coming off.

Ahmed Musa - 5

What’s the plan with this guy, is he a winger or a striker? Seems obvious, do whatever you’d do with Vardy, but they refuse to do that and it’s not a surprise that he’s not getting anything done.

Demarai Gray - 5

He got about as much as Musa done. He did look he might make something, but he’s got a much more defined role to follow. The late introduction of the wingers showed Claudio was always happy with a draw here.

Marc Albrighton - 6

Came on for a late defensive shift and did exactly what you’d expect. Also unsurprisingly, we finally got the ball into the box when he came on. Even if they were ultimately fruitless, it was the right thing to do with Ulloa on.

In a game like this, Man of the Match has to be a defender, doesn't it? I’m tempted to say Danny Simpson because his boring day fitted the game so well, but it was clearly Robert Huth.