Enzo Maresca is clear: Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall is the most improved player at Leicester City since he arrived here.
The manager has given an insight into this progress and hinted that the central outfield player initially took on too much “responsibility” and almost tried too hard to be a main player. He shot too often from awkward angles and long distances, trying to do something spectacular and neglecting some basic things.
Maresca said that he felt that Dewsbury-Hall behaved like that on the pitch because he came from the academy and was therefore more closely linked to the club, and because of the relegation and perhaps a sense of greater responsibility for it, he became more determined to return the club to the Premier League. But there are a few other reasons.
Firstly, he has his own goals and he decided early on that he was going to achieve them. He wants to be the best player in the division. He will contribute to this goal by scoring great headline goals.
In addition, there was a void in the team, which he felt was perhaps best filled by him. City sold James Maddison, their best player, in the summer and did not sign a precise replacement. He brought in Cesare Casade, but he is a different central midfielder to Maddison; the Italian is at his best when he runs with the ball and gets into the box.
Other advanced central midfielders are Wilfred Ndidi, a player who has shifted from the role of deep defender, and Dennis Praet, who was chosen by Maresca as the most technical of the available options, but has never shown the qualities in midfield to score a decent number of goals and assists.
As there was no one to do what Maddison had done, Dewsbury-Hall seemed to be trying to be his successor, so he shot from distance and occasionally overplayed rather than accepting a simple pass.
Dewsbury-Hall has now learned and is more successful as a result. His assists have increased, but he was still able to score a lot of goals by running into the box to receive passes, crosses and rebounds instead of shooting from 25 metres.
But maybe City could help him by signing someone closer to Maddison in profile. Of course, City aren’t giving up on a new central midfielder in January in connection with their promotion bid, but none of Ndidi, Praet and Casade seem to be perfect for the job Maresca is tasked with. In addition, the manager wanted another central midfielder in the summer, with Manchester City’s James McAtee close to joining him in the last week, but instead transferred to Sheffield United.
Maresca said there is always room for improvement, even for a side at the top of the table, and it seems an attacking midfielder in the style of Maddison, who can provide goals and assists, would be the way to create those improvements. Transfer rumours from last month suggest that City may be keeping an eye on someone.
If City were to sign a Maddison-type player, they would need a player who is excellent at receiving the ball in tight, forward areas and dribbling into space, a player who can weave between defences, who can make top-class crosses into the box and who can score goals, whether from 20 yards or five. Albert Gronbaek of Bodo/Glimt has it all.
Last month, it was reported in Norway that City, Lille, Galatasaray and Charlotte FC are among the clubs eyeing the 22-year-old Dane, whose numbers have attracted attention. Twenty goals and assists in 34 home games is a very good figure.
True, the Norwegian top flight is not the strongest, but Gronbaek is also performing well in the Conference Europa League. He is 20th in expected goals and assists in this season’s group stage, and the only two younger players above him are both strikers, not midfielders.
Take a look at his highlights and you’ll see plenty to admire. In particular, he seems to have mastered the finesse and twist that served Maddison so well and made him the dangerous player he became. There are a lot of things to like about Gronbaek, and at 22 he still has a lot of room to develop those skills.
As mentioned before, City are not giving up on a central outfield player at the moment. But if they are to progress, they will need a new player to play in that position. If they really wanted to make a statement for the rest of the Championship, they could do that deal in January and Gronbaek would be the perfect player to do it.