What the opposition said

By Richard Broadbent of the Leicester Mercury www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk

The fall and fall of Leicester City continued with a 5-0 home drubbing by the side most people tip to be bottom of the Premiership in May.

Whichever way you look at it, it was a disastrous and humil-iating start.

The cries for Peter Taylor's head may be premature, but the fans' frustration is understandable. After the back end of last season, when City were in free fall, many feared the new campaign would end in relegation.

Saturday's game did nothing to erase that anxiety. Muzzy Izzet was clearly unhappy with the fans' reaction at half-time, but what did he expect? Frank Sinclair said the boos were disappointing given the spirit City showed last season.

He must have a short memory if he has forgotten the total absence of spirit or passion in the last 10 games.

The fact is that City are under-achieving and face the prospect of playing Crewe in a half-empty stadium in the near future unless Sinclair and his colleagues can stop the rot.

"I don't believe the poor finish will roll over to this season," said Izzet before Bolton.

In fact, Saturday topped anything last season could throw up, including that landmark defeat by Wycombe Wanderers.

In defence of Taylor, he has had to cope with the loss of Neil Lennon, Tony Cottee and Emile Heskey, players who performed heroics for Martin O'Neill.

If not the heart of the side, the departure of Lennon removed the lungs, while those fans who said the club should snap Liverpool's hands off when they dangled a gargantuan carrot in front of Heskey are now ruing their avarice.

Some teething trouble should be allowed, too, as Taylor opts for a 4-4-2 system.

I believe the most worrying aspect of City's slump is the lack of spirit Sinclair mentioned. At the moment (and this includes the end of last season and therefore is not a knee-jerk reaction) City are a soft touch.

When things go wrong at any football club, the manager cops the blame. It is one of the curiosities of the sport. But the players, the ones who earn huge salaries, drive fast cars and are afforded hero status, should take responsibility.

For two-thirds of last season, City were solid and a fixture in the top six.

Before Wycombe, they had just beaten Sunderland and Liverpool. Then they collapsed, and it does not look as if they have recovered.

If it is a blip, as Sinclair says, it is a hell of a big one.

Bolton do not have better players than Leicester, but won on Saturday because they played for each other. The sum was greater than the parts.

Could it be that, like many of the fans, City's players have grown too accustomed to success?

If the bad run continues then Taylor will have to leave sooner or later.

If that happens, he will be the scapegoat for other's foibles. They say no side becomes useless overnight, but City went from European candidates to cannon fodder in the space of one defeat against lower-league opponents.

City used to rejoice in the nickname "the new Wimbledon" because of the way they sweated for their points.

Sadly, Saturday was more like the current Wimbledon. In the Press box where I sat on Saturday, the assorted hacks were damning in their verdicts. "Down by Christmas," said one. Nobody disagreed.

The reputation that City have earned is fast disappearing. The challenge the players now face is to prove the increasing band of doubters wrong. And quickly.