Leicester City – West Ham: Foxes Go Down Fighting (2-1)

Leicester City showed a fairly good possession game in their 4-3-3 system, earning them a two goal lead as they fought to avoid relegation. West Ham became more proactive in the second half with some good wing play, but ultimately could not find the equalizer. Despite this, the win was not enough for Leicester, who were relegated due to results elsewhere.
Tactical analysis and match report by Josh Manley.

Seven years on from their historic Premier League title, Leicester City started this match knowing that even a win may not be enough to keep them in the top flight. Dean Smith lined his side up in a 4-3-3 formation, with a back four of Timothy Castagne, Wout Faes, Jonny Evans, and Luke Thomas. Youri Tielemans was joined in midfield by Boubakary Soumaré and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, while the front three consisted of James Maddison, Kelechi Iheanacho, and Harvey Barnes.

West Ham meanwhile were looking to keep the ball rolling and stay sharp ahead of their Europa Conference League Final against Fiorentina. They lined up in their 4-2-3-1 system, fielding a defensive line of Vladimír Coufal, Thilo Kehrer, Nayef Aguerd, and Aaron Cresswell. Flynn Downes partnered Declan Rice in central midfield, with Pablo Fornals and Saïd Benrahma wide. Lucas Paquetá then played in the number ten role behind Michail Antonio.

Leicester take the initiative
The home side were under a lot of psychological pressure to come out and win this game. The first half saw a confident display from them under these circumstances. Their possession game was quite clean, and they were able to take the lead ten minutes before half-time thanks to Barnes . . .