“You have to have faith,” one of my students told me as I complained about how hard it was to go a day without eating. I put my fasting failure – attempted in solidarity with those adhering to the rules of Ramadan at the school I was teaching in – more down to a complete lack of self control rather than the absence of belief in a higher power, but then the control likely comes from the faith. Perhaps she had a point.
I managed two days. Getting up before sunrise to force food down my gullet that I really didn’t want, before stuffing my face 15 hours later with the vigour of a man who thought it necessary to save his life. Hot take: food is pretty important.
Monday was Wesley Fofana’s third Leicester start during Ramadan. All three of those games kicked off at least 12 hours after he last ate. He probably grabbed a bite at half-time in the 2-1 win over Crystal Palace: 15 hours after his last. While I could barely muster the energy to pull the classroom blind to prevent the glare on a David Attenborough wildlife documentary (thank you David, by the way), Fofana is playing Premier League football – the show-off.
The Frenchman was rightly criticised for his part in Palace’s goal. Youri Tilemans was more to blame – dallying on the ball and losing it in midfield – but as Eberechi Eze picked up the ball and ran at the Leicester back three, Fofana had to track Wilfred Zaha’s run rather than attempt to block the pass and play offside.
He’s generally very good at snuffing out chances like that, but it wasn’t the percentage play. As Jamie Carragher said in the Sky Sports studio, it’s part of a learning curve for the 20-year-old. But while not eating is an excellent excuse, frustratingly, for Fofana and for Leicester, it was a carbon copy of a goal they conceded in the 2-1 defeat to Fulham back in November. Brendan Rodgers will no doubt have pulled him up on the first occasion and will be even more vociferous this time around.
It was the sort of moment that would have looked really good had it come off: blocking a through ball to completely diffuse a very dangerous counter-attack. And if there is one criticism of Fofana in a brilliant debut Premier League season, it’s that he does enjoy the Hollywood defending – a sliding tackle, a dribble through the press, an intricate pass – a little too much.
It’s as though he’s in a constant battle with himself to curb those riskier tendencies; at times losing that battle and doing something a little daft that a more experienced defender perhaps wouldn’t. To be fair, many Premier League defenders wouldn’t do what he does because they can’t: some of his skill is simply beyond what others are capable of. And they are all useful qualities when exhibited in the right place at the right time. That is of course the key: the decision-making.
But it’s also the aspect of being a footballer that develops most with experience. Using parts of an armoury at inopportune moments is far less of a concern than not having them at all. Fofona is quick, powerful, has a great range of passing and an excellent first touch. You could easily argue he’s among the top ten centre-backs in the Premier League already and few would deny he has the ability to become the very best.
£31million for any defender at his level would be a good deal; considering the room he has for improvement, it really was an excellent bit of business. But then that should come as no surprise at Leicester – they don’t get many wrong.
“I’ve worked with lots of players with devotion to their faiths and for a lot of the guys it gives them strength,” Rodgers said of Fofana’s “remarkable” performances in the last couple of weeks. “He’s finding an incredible strength to play continuously and train during Ramadan. He’s a special talent and a big player for us.”
Fofana is in exactly the right place: at a team with one foot in the Champions League next season; under a patient manager who improves the players he works with. He will make mistakes, some more than once, but “you have to have faith”. Fofana’s clearly got it and so too does his manager.
Now go enjoy a well-earned feast, Wesley, you incredible human being.
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