Allgemeines » didnt affect Leicesters status as group winners but was

LONDON -- After spending last season as one of the key forces behind Leicesters rise to the Premier League title, Jamie Vardy is now the symbol of the teams alarming decline.The rough diamond unearthed in non-league soccer helped power Leicester to its first English title by scoring 24 goals. Defenses struggled to contain him as he scored in a record 11 consecutive Premier League games from August to November 2015.Now, the striker can barely get a shot on target and Leicester is struggling because of it.If Vardy fails to score against Manchester City on Saturday, it will be 11 consecutive games without a Premier League goal. And if results go against Leicester, the team could start the game in the relegation zone.The 29-year-old Vardy rejected the chance to join perennial top-four team Arsenal to see if Leicester could build on its fairytale season. That has happened in Europe, with Leicester qualifying for the round of 16 in its Champions League debut as group winners.Leicester collected as many points in the six group games as in the 14 Premier League matches so far: 13.Vardy didnt find the net once in five European games before being rested in Wednesdays 5-0 loss to FC Porto, which didnt affect Leicesters status as group winners but was a high-profile humiliation.Vardy has only contributed two Premier League goals and managed a mere four shots on target in the competition dominated by Leicester so unexpectedly last season. Whats also been noticeable is how Vardy is no longer linking so effectively with Riyad Mahrez -- if at all -- as the supply line for scoring opportunities has fractured.Unless the symbiotic relationship between Vardy and Mahrez rejuvenates in the second half of the season, Leicester is in real danger of seeing its three-season stay in the Premier League end on the first anniversary of its title triumph in May.Of course hes not happy, Leicester manager Claudio Ranieri said of the central England clubs Thai owner. No one at the club is.The one player Leicester couldnt persuade to stay offseason is being sorely missed. NGolo Kante produced a league-leading 175 tackles and 156 interceptions last season before joining Chelsea. The midfielder would seem to perform the work of two men when he was on the field and without him Leicesters defense has seemed easier to break through.Many at the club have publicly attributed the drop in domestic form to the desire to impress on the continent. Now there are no distractions for the next two months before the Champions League knockout phase begins.The visit of Manchester City is a timely reminder about the fate of champions. City was the last team to follow a title triumph with relegation, far back in 1938.Citys current mission is coping for the next four games without Sergio Aguero, with Kelechi Iheanacho replacing the banned striker in the starting lineup. City is fourth in the standings, four points behind Chelsea.---SWANSEA vs. SUNDERLANDWith only one win in seven games as Swansea manager, Bob Bradley has seen his new team slide to the bottom. The Americans dire introduction to the Premier League was heightened when his disjointed team lost 5-0 at Tottenham last week.Is Bradleys job already under threat?You go in every day and at any moment the club can say `We need to make a change, Bradley said Thursday. But if you worry about that, the players will spit you out fast. They will see through you. If I am telling the players they have to look adversity in the eye and have some courage, then I have got to do that, too.Bradley shouldnt give up hope. He only has to look to Sunderland, the team that was last when he took charge in south Wales and plays Swansea on Saturday. Sunderland has hauled itself to a point from safety by winning three of its last four games under David Moyes.---BURNLEY vs. BOURNEMOUTHTheres a meeting Saturday between two of the leagues four English managers.What is surprising is that only Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe, rather than Burnley counterpart Sean Dyche, was seriously linked with the England coaching job when it came up twice this year.In its second-ever top-flight campaign, Bournemouth is 10th in the 20-team standings after beating Liverpool last weekend by winning 4-3 from 3-1 down.Burnley, after making an instant return to the Premier League, is 15th. Chaussure Air Max 270 Pas Cher . Any real chance at payback wont come until the playoff. Still, Pittsburgh knows its taut 3-2 win over the Bruins on Wednesday night is a pretty good place to start laying the groundwork. "They are a very good defensive team," Penguins forward Brandon Sutter said. Air Max 97 Soldes . Meanwhile, there were huge victories for Sunderland and West Ham over fellow relegation rivals, leaving the battle to avoid the drop up for grabs with the bottom 11 teams separated by just six points. Eden Hazard and Fernando Torres scored second-half goals to seal a fourth straight victory for Chelsea, which climbed above Arsenal and Manchester City in the standings ahead of their games on Monday and Sunday respectively. http://www.pascherairmax97.fr/ . Gather a group of friends, or find a league to join online, draft your team, set your lineup and compete in a number of different formats. Air Max 97 France .com) - The Chicago Blackhawks aim for their third three-game winning streak of the season when they host the struggling Edmonton Oilers in Sundays battle at the United Center. Air Max 97 Pas Cher En Ligne . The deal is pending a physical, assistant general manager Bobby Evans said. Traded from Seattle to Baltimore on Aug. 30, Morse also can play first base and right field to give manager Bruce Bochy some flexibility in writing his lineup.Harlequins director of rugby Conor OShea reckons England prop Joe Marler would have endured a hostile reception in Australia had he not withdrawn from the summer tour. Marler has been mired in controversy this season after being banned for a racial slur on Samson Lee of Wales during the Six Nations and for committing an act of foul play against Grenoble hooker Arnaud Heguy while playing front-row for Harlequins.After speaking to England head coach Eddie Jones, Marler decided to pull out of the Test against Wales on Sunday week and three-match series against the Wallabies on the grounds he is not in the right frame of mind to play international rugby. OShea believes it is the right decision and recalls the hostility displayed towards Marler by Montpellier fans before kick-off in Fridays Challenge Cup final in Lyon.When I heard the reaction from the French crowd that he got when his name was read out in Lyon last weekend all I could think was thank God hes not on the pitch to hear that, OShea said.I was down in Australia in 1994 and I remember trying to put in a contact lens, my picture being put up on the big screen, and someone saying, go back and put on your makeup. Conor OShea, Harlequins director of rugby You know Australia will not be backwards in coming forward and all things considered they have made the decision that is right for Joe in the long term.ddddddddddddI know what hes gone through over the last few months and I respect whatever decision he and Eddie have made.And Marler indicated the pressure of a troubled season has taken its toll on him.It has been a very enjoyable but sometimes difficult season, said Marler in a statement released by the Rugby Football Union.After speaking to Eddie I have decided that the best thing for me is to take a rest and not go to Australia.Whenever you play for England you have to be 100 per cent and unfortunately Im not in that place at the moment. Its not a decision Ive come to lightly, but I feel I would be letting my team-mates and my country down if I were to tour. Also See: Marler pulls out of tour Marler banned again ' ' '