Could Brendan Rodgers’ Job Come Down to the Next Three Matches?

Leicester City are in sole possession of last place in the Premier League. Through nine matches, the Foxes have managed a measly four points. After an improved performance against 19th placed Nottingham Forest, Rodgers’ squad regressed by blowing a one goal advantage in three minutes to lose 2-1 against Bournemouth.

During the 2021/2022 season, Burnley were relegated with 35 points. Right now, you would find fans who would guarantee this squad can reach that many points. However, if the Foxes are going to dig themselves out of this early season hole, it starts with the next three matches against Crystal Palace, Leeds United, and Wolverhampton.

You would be hard pressed to find an easier stretch of games left in the season for the club. Leeds sit in 14th (2-3-3). Palace are in 15th (2-3-3). Wolves, who just sacked their manager, are with Leicester in the relegation zone (1-3-5). Leeds and Palace are as likely to draw as they are to lose and Wolves lose more than they draw. For Rodgers, the writing is on the wall to save his job and to keep Leicester City in the top flight.

The gaffer must manage at least three points in these next three matches. If the club fails to meet three draws or one win, the manager will likely be sacked and Leicester City will be at least nine points away from safety with more difficult fixtures following. This includes a brutal five match stretch where the Foxes face Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, and Tottenham.

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Crystal Palace come first for the Foxes and will be the toughest task. After losing to Manchester City, Palace are in their best form of the young season. They settled for a draw after giving Brentford a 90th minute goal. They rebounded with a draw against Newcastle. Then, they nearly took points off Chelsea before another 90th minute goal. Finally, they beat Leeds 2-1 this past weekend. The honest assessment for Leicester is that they should be fine playing for a draw in this match. Taking a point against a squad in better form is acceptable in the club’s current predicament.

In the next match, Leicester will host Leeds. This match comes at a perfect time for the Foxes who can take advantage of a squad in bad form. Outside of the aforementioned loss to Palace, Leeds were in a scoreless draw with Villa where they were red-carded and face Arsenal this weekend who sit top of the table. The Gunners were sensational against Liverpool and should batter Jesse March’s squad. Leicester could play for a win here, but a draw would also be acceptable.

Regardless if Leicester are pointless against Palace and Leeds, they finish this vital three game stretch in a must win contest against Wolves. For starters, the Wanderers will be under a caretaker manager or they will have a brand new manager trying to implement their system when Leicester travel to the Molineux. Couple that with the fact that Wolves are in the worst form in the Premier League having just been thumped by Manchester City, West Ham, and Chelsea. Most importantly, this is another team currently in the relegation zone that Leicester City need to leapfrog. The Foxes simply cannot gives three points to another side in the bottom three.

While it is early in the season, Leicester City have already arrived at a pivotal point. Cautiously optimistic fans should want to see five points from these three fixtures with two draws against tougher competition and a win against Wolves. However, be willing to settle with three draws or one win. This will at least buy Rodgers more time to figure it out and the club will avoid free-falling in the second division.