Leicester City manager Enzo Maresca admits that he doesn’t believe his team is superior to Burnley at this stage, making an honest statement to Leicestershire Live. Despite this, the Foxes have had a remarkable start to the season, leading many to believe they could go down in history as the best Championship team ever. To solidify this status, they aim to surpass Reading’s record of 106 points from the 2005/06 campaign. Currently, having won 11 out of their opening 12 matches, they are on track to break that record. With 33 points out of a possible 36, they are strong contenders for the title, alongside Ipswich Town. The latter will struggle to keep up with Leicester City if the latter keeps accumulating points at this rate.
Losing key players like James Maddison, Harvey Barnes, and Timothy Castagne in the summer posed a challenge for Maresca’s side, as the former two were assets in attack during the team’s Premier League campaign last season. However, Leicester City has done exceptionally well to reach their current position despite these departures. Their squad’s strength should have ensured a position near the top of the table, regardless of their start to the season. Nevertheless, most fans did not expect such a strong beginning. In addition to the departures, new signings needed time to settle in, and the entire squad had to adapt to Maresca’s style of play. Fortunately, they quickly implemented Maresca’s instructions, making them strong favorites to make an immediate return to the top flight.
Given Leicester City’s impressive performance, comparisons with Burnley have emerged. Burnley won the Championship title last season, prompting discussions about whether Leicester City is a better team than Vincent Kompany’s side from the 2022/23 season. Maresca, however, has been eager to avoid such comparisons. He acknowledges Burnley’s dominance last season with 101 points, emphasizing that Leicester City still needs to earn 70 more points to surpass them. He believes it would be disrespectful to disregard Burnley’s achievements. While Leicester City is pleased with their current trajectory, Maresca acknowledges that anything can happen in football. The second half of the season remains uncertain, and results are dependent on numerous factors.
Currently, it appears that Leicester City will comfortably surpass Burnley’s 101-point tally. Their ability to start the season strongly amidst the hurdles they faced is commendable. Despite their quality and depth, their results may not be as impressive, but they deserve credit for outperforming other relegated teams from the Premier League, such as Leeds United and Southampton. While Leicester City currently appears in better shape than Burnley, Maresca reminds everyone that there is still plenty of time left in the season. Their consistency will determine whether they can be considered a superior team to Burnley’s 2022/23 side.
