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What a team of stars
The were all world
class or among the best, but at Leicester it was different
THE CUNNING FOX,
15.03.2010
A number of
top class players have moved to Leicester, but never really
influenced our team much with short spells at the club and almost
vanishing before it started
To pick a team of these "guys in disguise" is great fun, and it
shows that the world of football is unpredictable. Here is our pick
of the players that we never really noticed at our club, but that
was legends and great players elsewhere.
Paul Cooper is the choice for the goalkeeper position. Cooper
was mostly known for his time at Ipswich and became a legend at
Portman Road.
He moved to Leicester in his latter years in football and played for
us from 1987 to 1989. He played 56 league games for us in a
struggling team that just managed to stay alive in division 2.
Cooper won the FA Cup and the UEFA Cup with Ipswich and became an
expert in saving penalties which was very important during they
years that Ipswich was among the best clubs in England. Cooper
played 447 league games for the Tractor boys.
At right back there a number of top quality players that really
never managed to show their greatness while at Leicester. Our pic is
David Langan. Langan made his name with Derby and later also
a solid player for Birmingham City and Oxford.
Langan was capped 26 times representing Republic of Ireland. He
played only 5 league games for Leicester, on loan. The Derby right
back played 143 league games for our rivals and will never be
remembered for his days with us.
Willie Bell picks up the left back position. Bell was a great
hero at Leeds and also played a number of games for his country
Scotland. Bell moved to Leicester in the late 60's but moved on
after just 49 league appearances in a two year period from 1967 to
1969. Bell played 204 games for Leeds.
Martin Keown never managed to influence much when moving to
our club in the summer of 2004. City had just been relegated and to
get Martin Keown looked as a solid signing, despite him being 38.
Keown had a fantastic career behind him at Arsenal, Aston Villa and
Everton. He had been to the World Cup and was capped 43 times. He
left Leicester after just a few months and played 17 league games.
Allan Evans joined Leicester from Aston Villa. He was a cult
hero at Villa Park, but injuries and lack of form stopped every
chance of him becoming anything else than a flop while with
Leicester. Evans played for Leicester for a year or so. He completed
14 games before moving on to Darlington.
In midfield, we can't leave Steffen Freund out. Steffen Freund
joined Leicester from Kaiserslautern in 2004. The former
Borussia Dortmund and Tottenham midfield dynamo played 14 games for
Leicester before haning up his boots in the summer of 2004. Freund
was previously a member of Germany's Euro 1996 winning team and also
won the Champions League while at Dortmund.
In the other central midfield position I would chose Ricky Hill.
Ricky was a former England international and a legend at Luton Town
when David Pleat bought the player from Le Havre in France. Hill had
problems with injuries and played just 16 league games for us.
Laurie Cunningham is our preferred choice on one of the
flanks. Cunningham had a short loan spell at Leicester, and he did
well, but he moved on after only 15 league games in the 1985-86
season. Cunningham had a past at WBA, Real Madrid and Manchester
United. He had also played for England and once described as the
most exciting talent in English football.
Frank McLintock introduced a number of strange signings when he took
charge of Leicester in 1977. He signed George Armstrong from
Arsenal. A player that had won everything with The Gunners and a
legend at Highbury. Armstrong was in his 30's when he joined
Leicester. Armstrong played 500 league games for Arsenal, but at
Leicester it stopped at 15.
Up front it was never a problem to find great candidates. Stan
Collymore joined City from Aston Villa in 2000, but it all ended
after a few months. Collymore played 11 league games for Leicester
but it was never a partnership that could be worked on after a
promising start.
Newly appointed Man City boss, Roberto Mancini, will be my
choice to partner Collymore up front. The former Italian
international and Italian serie A star made a sensational comeback
with Leicester, but his time at the club ended after only four
Premier League games in the start of 2001.
When we pick our greatest Leicester City team ever, none of these
players comes to mind. They could probably at their best beat any of
the so called legendary City teams and favourite 11's.
1. Paul Cooper
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2. David Langan
3. Willie Bell
4. Martin Keown
5. Allan Evans
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6. Steffen Freund
7. Ricky Hill
8. George Armstrong
11. Laurie Cunningham
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9. Stan Collymore
10. Roberto Mancini
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