MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 10: Will Alves of Leicester City arrives at Old Trafford ahead of the Premier League match between Manchester United and Leicester City at Old Trafford on November 10, 2024 in Manchester, United Kingdom. (Photo by Plumb Images/Leicester City FC via Getty Images)
Steve Cooper’s future at Leicester City is already being called into question.
After Enzo Maresca left Leicester City for Chelsea earlier this year, Steve Cooper was appointed to the dugout at the King Power Stadium.
The 46-year-old had previous Premier League experience with Nottingham Forest but his time with the Foxes has not gone to plan, to say the least.
Ahead of club football returning, Leicester have a 46.9% chance of suffering relegation according to Opta.
The Midlands outfit sit just three points above the relegation zone ahead of their upcoming meeting with Chelsea.
This poor form has seen Leicester give Cooper a deadline to save his job, with the ex-Forest boss now having until the end of the calendar year to prove himself.
While the higher-ups at King Power look set to keep faith in the manager for the time being, Leicester fans have already turned on Cooper.
Data shows fresh Leicester City problem as well as Steve Cooper doubts
Ruud van Nistelrooy has been backed to replace Cooper following his recent exit from Manchester United.
However, while the future of their manager is a concern, another major problem has now emerged this week.
The Athletic have released a table showing how many minutes all 20 Premier League clubs have given to club-trained academy players this season compared to the rest of their squads.
And rather worryingly, Leicester sit 16th in the list with just 0.4 percent of their minutes offered to academy products.
Only Brentford, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Fulham and West Ham United have given fewer minutes to their rising stars (all 0 percent).
Best Leicester City academy products yet to be given chance
Will Alves is considered a bright young talent but he is yet to feature in the Premier League this season, earning just 36 minutes of senior across two League Cup games.
Elsewhere, 16-year-old Louis Page has been tipped for a bright Leicester future, being named as one of The Guardian’s top-20 most promising talents in the Premier League last month.
However, the teenager is still yet to see any senior action and the data suggests it is unlikely to come anytime soon.
This may lead the likes of Page and Alves to question their long-term future at the club as, right now, there is no clear path to the first team.
