Despite being league leaders at the moment, Leicester could finish outside the top 6 and here’s why

Lack of squad depth plus the resurgence of other teams might spoil Leicester’s European aspirations 

Claudio Ranieri’s Leicester continue to defy expectations this season, and are currently top of the Premier league table with more than half of the season complete. Their impressive 3-0 home win against Stoke City last week saw them reclaim top spot with a 3 point leader over second placed Manchester City. The fans as well as the players at the King Power would definitely have their thoughts sets on Champions league football next season, if not the title itself.

However, just to play devil’s advocate, Leicester City’s dream run in the Premier league will surely come to an end very soon and the midlands club could finish outside the top six, here’s why.

Claudio Ranieri’s Leicester used only 20 players in the Premier league so far which is the joint lowest alongside Swansea City. The likes of Marc Albrighton, N’Golo Kante, Jamie Vardy and Wes Morgan has appeared in every league match this season and might surely be feeling fatigued and exhausted come the closing months of the season. Leicester’s star performers Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez have already had their problems with fitness, missing mid-week training sessions on occasion to keep fit for weekend games. If Ranieri would lose any of his star performers to injury or fatigue, it could be a massive blow for the club’s European aspirations as they don’t have the same quality and talent on the bench that their fellow title contenders possess.

Another cause for worry for Leicester could be their mediocre performances against the big teams of England. The Foxes managed to pick up only 6 points out of a potential 18 against last season’s top six teams. Their inability to perform on big occasions could be a stumbling block for their European goals, especially considering the Foxes play Liverpool, Manchester City and Arsenal in their next three Premier league games.

Thirdly, the resurgence of Premier league giants like Chelsea and Liverpool who finally seem to heading in the right direction after a string of recent impressive showings. At the beginning of the season, both those clubs would have aimed for a top 4 finish and would now be attempting to rekindle those aspirations, coming off the back of impressive away victories in the league last week.

Finally, almost everybody in Leicester now believes that the club could well and truly make it to the Champions league next season. The Foxes played the first half of the season are rank outsiders for the title but come February and Leicester are well and truly in the title race. The pressure on Ranieri’s  boys will have magnified tenfold since the start of the season and everybody has started to take notice of their star players like Vardy and Mahrez.

It’s going to be a tough road ahead for Leicester and one that is surely to challenge their title aspirations in the days to come.