Ricardo Pereira is one of the main candidates for Leicester City’s Player of the Season award this campaign. What’s more, the 30-year-old is a big contender for the title of best player in the whole Championship.
The Portuguese has established himself as one of Enzo Maresco’s most important players this term with a subtle tactical change to his game. After spending four years with the Foxes as an offensive wing-back, Pereira has transformed into a completely different player.
Starting games at right-back, Pereira finds himself inside alongside Harry Winks as City’s centre pivot. This change creates a 3-2-4-1 in attack, with the former Porto star returning to the right flank when Leicester are forced to defend.
Leicester took another step towards an immediate return to the Premier League on Tuesday night, beating Sheffield Wednesday 2-0. Pereira played his second full 90 minutes in three games and the reality of his performances this season comes with an obvious realisation.
For the first time since the 2018/19 season, Pereira has not missed a game due to injury. He has played 34 games this season, including the full 90 minutes 24 times. One more appearance this season will equal his highest number of appearances for the Foxes (35).
Former Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers really suffered from Pereira’s injuries. The wing-back missed the entire closed-door programme in 2020 and another 24 games in 2020/21 due to torn cruciate ligaments suffered against Aston Villa.
The following season he suffered a hamstring injury and last season he suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon, which kept him out for another 28 games. Pereira has missed 72 games due to various injuries.
So why, apart from the obvious tactical replacement of Maresco, is Pereira avoiding re-injury?
The biggest factor that has contributed to his better luck with injuries is the change in his individual style of play. Statistics are objective and one of the biggest changes has been in his receiving style. In the 18/19 season, Pereira attempted 110 receptions, and in the 19/20 season he attempted 101.
Of course, there is still a lot of football to be played and this figure could increase, but it should be remembered that Pereira has already racked up more appearances in this campaign than in all but one of his previous five games at Leicester.
Out of his 30 take-offs, he was attacked only nine times. Compared to 42 (18/19) and 41 (19/20), he is not at such high risk of injury. The Portuguese has also completed 1089 passes this season (controlling the ball with his feet), with a total distance of 4039 metres and only 2152 metres towards the opponent’s goal. In the 18/29 season he carried the ball a total of 7058 metres and in the 19/20 season 6824 metres.
Pereira’s contribution was mitigated further down the line. The City captain has made 36 progressive carries (carries where the ball moves towards the opponent’s goal or into the penalty area) this season, a significant drop from 114 carries in 18/19 and 116 carries in 19/20.
He also received far fewer (44) progressive passes (passes towards the opponent’s goal or into the penalty area) than before. Ricardo’s reliance on carrying the ball forward and into dangerous spaces has decreased, and as these statistics have decreased, his passing numbers make for impressive reading.
Pereira has already completed more passes this season (1,856 from 2,047 -90.7%) than in any of his previous five seasons with the club, with his second best performance coming in 19/20 at 75.7%. His crossing opportunities became limited as he only crossed into the penalty area twice. In the 18/19 season he sent 104 passes into the penalty area.
Under Maresco, Pereira is responsible for linking the defensive line and midfield inside Leicester’s half with the option of playing through the lines to either Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall or one of the wing-backs. Occasionally Winks drops deep and Pereira takes up position just in front of him, behind the opposition’s first line of pressure, then receives the ball and drives forward. As we saw with his goal against Watford.
Positioning is everything in the Italian system. Pereira is much more circumspect in his decisions when he counts the numbers. His 105 touches in the defensive penalty area and 1356 touches in the middle third of the pitch are the most he has recorded in any other season in those areas of the pitch.
On offense, Pereira had only 431 touches in the attacking third – fewer than in 18/19 (711) and 701 (19/20) – and only 22 touches in the opponent’s penalty area, significantly fewer than the 67 in 18/19 and 56 in 19/20.
Watching Leicester this season has been a pleasure. To see the head coach building a relationship with the fans has been golden. But to see Ricardo Pereira playing consistently and with a smile on his face again is one of the best sights for the Foxes.