When the fixtures for the 2015/16 Premier League campaign were released back in June, it is unlikely that even the most ardent Leicester City supporter highlighted Saturday’s encounter with Manchester United as a potential top-of-the-table clash.
It has been an extraordinary start to the season from Claudio Ranieri’s league leaders, who were considered leading candidates for relegation, when the Italian was appointed in July.
The last time a side other than Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal or Manchester United topped the table after 13 matches was Leeds United in 1999/00.
That, however, was not as much of a surprise as Leicester’s recent rise to the summit, for Leeds had finished the previous campaign in fourth place.
The last team to lead the way at the equivalent point of the season, having ended the preceding year outside the top half, were newly promoted Blackburn Rovers in 1992/93.
It is a statistic that highlights the scale of Leicester’s achievement, and although cynics may point to a relatively kind fixture list in the opening 13 games, there is little doubt that Ranieri and his players deserve their lofty standing.
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Their opponents this weekend have won the English top flight a record 20 times and therefore cannot be labelled a surprise package, but many were unconvinced by their title credentials in the summer.
United have received a fair amount of criticism over the last three and a half months, but their domestic results have generally been good and they head to the King Power Stadium knowing that victory will return them to first place in the Premier League.
The most intriguing aspect of Saturday’s meeting between the top two is the sides’ contrasting styles of play.
With 28 goals scored, Leicester are the division’s most productive attackers, while United boast the meanest defence, their back line having been breached on only nine occasions.
No team has averaged more possession than Louis van Gaal’s United (55 per cent), while only West Bromwich Albion and Sunderland have posted lower figures than Ranieri’s (47 per cent).
United bide their time and look to build attacks slowly; Leicester prefer getting the ball forward quickly and playing on the break.
This weekend’s fixture, then, is a battle of ideas, with antithetical approaches both thriving in their respective environments.
In their miraculous escape act under Nigel Pearson last term — Leicester won seven of their final nine games to survive — the current league leaders developed a reputation for being extremely dangerous on the counter-attack.
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Rather than drastically change Leicester’s methodology in a bid to put his own stamp on the team, Ranieri has kept faith with that blueprint, making a few tweaks here and there but ultimately improving rather than overhauling the established philosophy.
Robert Huth and Wes Morgan are strong and robust centre-halves who are concerned with defending above all else, with midfielders N’Golo Kante and Danny Drinkwater tasked with winning the ball in the middle of the pitch and moving it forward at speed.
The tricky Riyad Mahrez and pacey Jamie Vardy, meanwhile, are potent weapons at the top of the pitch.
United, conversely, favour a possession-based approach, with Van Gaal preaching patience and control. They are much less daring than Leicester — critics, including legendary United midfielder Paul Scholes, have condemned the lack of risk-taking and adventure — but a glance at the table suggests the Dutchman’s tactics must be having some sort of effect.
Chris Smalling has been a revelation at centre-half, but United’s defensive solidity is primarily a result of their collective style, set-up and structure, with opponents frequently finding it difficult to create chances against them.
The template for Saturday’s encounter is already set: United will seek to dominate the ball, Leicester to sit deep and spring forward on the break.
With their ideas of play so opposed, the game could be decided by which of the teams is better able to implement their way of doing things.
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