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Leicester City booked their place in the semi-finals of the 2020-21 FA Cup for the first time since 1982 with a well-deserved 3-1 win over Manchester United at the King Power Stadium on Sunday.
Although Manchester United made the more encouraging start to the game, it was the home side that took the lead in the 24th minute when Kelechi Iheanacho pounced on an error by Fred to give his side the lead.
However, as Leicester City looked to drive home their advantage, Manchester United got back on level terms via a smart finish in the 38th minute from Mason Greenwood, albeit arguably against the run of play.
Youri Tielemans then restored the home side’s advantage seven minutes into the second half, sprinting into the final third and taking advantage of some indecisive defending from Manchester United to drill the ball into the bottom corner.
With Manchester United pushing for the equaliser, Leicester City doubled their advantage in the 78th minute through Iheanacho, who ghosted in at the back post to head home Marc Albrighton’s inviting free-kick.
The two-goal deficit proved to be too much for Manchester United to come back from. Leicester City comfortably saw out the game to move into the semi-final, where they will face Southampton at Wembley Stadium.
On that note, let's have a look at five major talking points from the game.
#1 Manchester United and Leicester name contrasting lineups
Despite there being very little difference in their respective league positions, there was a lot of difference in Leicester City and Manchester United’s preparation leading up to this FA Cup tie, which was evident in their respective team selections.
The home side, who had had a whole week to prepare for this fixture, made just one change from their previous game; that one was forced on them due to an unfortunate injury.
In the other camp, Manchester United made five changes from their midweek tie in the Europa League as the manager handed starts to Donny van de Beek and Paul Pogba, among others, keeping workload management in mind.
Although Leicester City named virtually their strongest available playing XI, a spate of injuries to key players meant they were left weakened in terms of reinforcements on the bench.
Meanwhile, a much-changed Manchester United had much more firepower in reserve, with the likes of Bruno Fernandes and Edinson Cavani, to name a few, waiting in the wings.
#2 Kelechi Iheanacho is Leicester City’s man in form
A number of recent injuries to key first-team players have forced Leicester City to deviate from their usual formation and adopt a more innovative approach, shifting to a three-at-the-back formation.
One of the many forced changes to the Foxes’ lineup has resulted in Jamie Vardy and Kelechi Iheanacho playing alongside each other instead of their usual system of playing instead of each other.
While long-term frontman Vardy has not been at his usual free-scoring best in recent games, Iheanacho has emerged as a welcome, if unexpected, source of goals for Leicester City.
The Nigerian international was on target for the fourth straight game in this fixture, also claiming the assist for Tielemans’ well-taken goal in the second half to add to his brace.
With seven goals in his last four matches, including a hat-trick in the Premier League, Iheanacho has benefited from the space afforded to him by opposition defenders, whom Vardy adeptly draws away with his clever runs.
As such, Rodgers and Leicester City will hope that the Iheanacho and Vardy strike partnership is able to propel the Foxes to a strong finish to the season.
#3 Manchester United’s defensive frailties come to the fore
Manchester United have so often been the architects of their own downfall, with a number of high-profile defensive errors leading to goals during the course of the season.
Against Leicester City, it was Fred who was at fault for the first goal, as his weak back-pass was pounced by Iheanacho, who rounded the Manchester United goalkeeper and slotted the ball into an empty net.
The Manchester United defence was questionable for Iheanacho’s second goal as well, as the in-form striker was allowed to ghost in unmarked at the back post to extend his side’s lead.
In fact, questions might even be asked of Manchester United’s defending for the second goal, as a number of red-shirted players seemed reluctant to close down Tielemans, who duly took advantage of the time and space afforded to him to fire home.
Apart from the three eminently avoidable goals, Manchester United were extremely sloppy in possession, regularly giving the ball away in dangerous areas through poor passing. They might consider themselves lucky not to have lost by a bigger margin.
As such, while some of Manchester United’s defensive failings can be put down to fatigue, their defending has certainly let them down at crucial points during the season. That is something Ole Gunnar Solskjaer must address if they are to realistically challenge for trophies going forward.
#4 Both managers in search of their first silverware for their respective clubs
After taking charge of their respective clubs at around the same time, both Brendan Rodgers and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer have been reasonably successful with their respective projects.
Although Solskjaer took over Manchester United on a temporary basis in December 2018, it wasn’t until March 2019 that he was appointed permanently, around a month after the Foxes brought Brendan Rodgers over from Celtic.
With both Rodgers and Solskjaer having overseen a period of marked improvement at their respective clubs, the focus has now shifted towards consolidating this success with a trophy.
As such, the FA Cup seems to be a good starting point for any manager looking to lay the foundations for a long and successful stint at a top Premier League side. Both Rodgers and Solskjaer would have been itching to get their hands on the famous trophy come the end of the season.
On this occasion, it was Rodgers’ Leicester City who came out on top. Their reward is a semi-final against Southampton at Wembley, while Solskjaer and Manchester United are left to focus on the Europa League in their pursuit of silverware.
#5 Manchester United’s remarkable undefeated run away from home comes to an end
Manchester United last tasted defeat in a domestic fixture away from home over a year ago when they slumped to a 2-0 defeat at Anfield against eventual Premier League champions Liverpool.
Since then, the Red Devils have managed to string together 29 games undefeated on the road, with their away form proving to be the cornerstone of their improved recent domestic form.
However, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men were well beaten by Leicester City on this occasion, with the Foxes besting their opponents in all areas across the pitch.
As a result, while Leicester march on towards Wembley Stadium with a well-deserved win, United only have their undefeated away record in the Premier League left to preserve.
