2009–10 Leicester City F.C. season

The 2009–10 season was Leicester City F.C.'s 105th season in the English football league system and their 58th in the second tier of English football. It was their first season back in the Championship after promotion from League One as champions in 2008–09. It was also the club's 125th anniversary season.

Leicester City
2009–10 season
ChairmanMilan Mandarić
ManagerNigel Pearson
Football League Championship5th
FA CupFourth round
League CupSecond round
Top goalscorerLeague: Waghorn (12)
All: Fryatt (13)
Highest home attendance31,759 (vs. Nottingham Forest, Championship, 27 February 2010)
Lowest home attendance12,307 (vs. Swansea City, FA Cup, 2 January 2010)
Average home league attendance24,542

Having just been promoted, Nigel Pearson's side surprised many by spending most of the season in the play-offs. They eventually finished fifth, reaching the play-offs. This was considered an impressive finish and a stride forward by many, considering Leicester were relegated from the same division two seasons previously. They eventually lost out in the play-off semi-finals to Cardiff City on a penalty shoot-out.

Pre-season

After winning League One by seven points, manager Nigel Pearson sought to strengthen the squad ahead of the Championship campaign. 2008–09 loanees Jack Hobbs and Wayne Brown were quickly signed on permanent deals from Liverpool and Hull City respectively. Veterans Barry Hayles, Bruno N'Gotty, Paul Henderson, Patrick Kisnorbo and Marc Edworthy were released at the end of their contracts. The Foxes further added to their squad with the captures of goalkeeper Chris Weale, defender Robbie Neilson and midfielders Richie Wellens and Dany N'Guessan. However, the forward line remained unreinforced until 19-year-old Martyn Waghorn arrived on loan from Sunderland just before the opening game against Swansea City.

Joe Mattock, part of the England squad for the European U-19 Championships, handed in a transfer request just 48 hours before the first match of the season. He eventually moved to fellow Championship club West Bromwich Albion for an undisclosed fee.

Kit and sponsorship
Leicester City's badge for the 2009–10 season.

Leicester City's home kit for the 2009–10 season was unveiled before the final home game of 2008–09 against Scunthorpe United. To mark the 125th anniversary of the club's founding in 1884, the design of the front of the shirt had earlier been put to an online vote, with the fans deciding to keep the home shirt blank and sponsorless. A special badge was created for this kit, to be used for one season only.

The blue and black design of the away kit mirrors the shirts worn in the club's first game in 1884. It is branded with the logo of LOROS, a charity providing hospice care in Leicestershire. The charity will receive a percentage of the sale price of each shirt sold from their shops.

Both strips are manufactured by Joma, following the expiration of the club's previous deal with Jako.

Friendlies

After reporting back for pre-season training on 1 July, the club remained unbeaten through six pre-season games:

11 July 2009 1 Loughborough Dynamo 1–3 Leicester City Loughborough
Johnson (Report) Kee
Dickov
Adams 		Stadium: Nanpanton Sports Ground
Attendance: 1,000+
13 July 2009 2 Tamworth 1–1 Leicester City Tamworth
Wright (Report) Berner Stadium: The Lamb Ground
Attendance: 1,035
21 July 2009 3 Mansfield Town 0–0 Leicester City Mansfield
(Report) Stadium: Field Mill
Referee: R Booth
25 July 2009 4 Shrewsbury Town 0–4 Leicester City Shrewsbury
(Report) Hobbs
Dyer 2
N'Guessan 		Stadium: Prostar Stadium
Attendance: 2,030
Referee: S Rushton
28 July 2009 5 Chesterfield 0–1 Leicester City Chesterfield
(Report) N'Guessan Stadium: Saltergate
Attendance: 1,973
Referee: J Waugh
2 August 2009 6 Leicester City 1–0 Real Valladolid Leicester
Fryatt (Report) Stadium: Walkers Stadium
Attendance: 6,141
Referee: L Mason, Bolton

Record

2009–10 was Leicester City's 58th season at the second tier of English football. Their record of winning the division on six occasions (although not since 1980) is second only to Manchester City. Prior to the 2009–10 season, their record at this level was:

Champions 6 1924–25, 1936–37, 1953–54, 1956–57, 1970–71, 1979–80
Automatic promotion 3 1907–08, 1982–83, 2002–03
Promotion play-off winners 2 1994, 1996
Promotion play-off runners-up 2 1992, 1993
Top half 19
Bottom half 24
Relegated 1

Players

2009–10 squad
Only includes players given a squad number. The squad listed is the squad which Leicester finished the season with.[1]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  ENG Chris Weale
2 DF  SCO Robbie Neilson
3 DF  NIR Ryan McGivern (on loan from Manchester City)
4 DF  ENG Michael Morrison
5 DF  BUL Aleksandar Tunchev
6 DF  ENG Wayne Brown (vice-captain)
7 MF  PER Nolberto Solano
8 MF  ENG Matt Oakley (captain)
9 FW  SCO Steve Howard
10 MF  WAL Andy King
11 MF  ENG Lloyd Dyer
12 FW  ENG Matty Fryatt
13 GK  IRL Conrad Logan
15 DF   SUI Bruno Berner
16 MF  WAL Nicky Adams
17 MF  FRA Dany N'Guessan
No. Pos. Nation Player
18 FW  ENG Martyn Waghorn (on loan from Sunderland)
19 MF  ENG Richie Wellens
20 DF  ENG Luke O'Neill
21 FW  ENG Ashley Chambers
22 FW  FRA Yann Kermorgant
23 FW  ENG DJ Campbell
24 FW  SCO Paul Gallagher
25 DF  ENG Jack Hobbs
26 MF  SWE Astrit Ajdarević
27 FW  ENG James Vaughan (on loan from Everton)
29 DF  ENG Chris Powell
30 DF  ENG Tom Parkes
31 GK  ENG Carl Pentney
32 MF  ENG Aman Verma
33 DF  IRL Alex Bruce (on loan from Ipswich Town)
34 DF  ENG Jay Spearing (on loan from Liverpool)

Transfers

In
Date Pos. Nat. Name From Fee
29 June 2009 MF Dany N'Guessan Lincoln City Undisclosed
1 July 2009 DF Jack Hobbs Liverpool Undisclosed
1 July 2009 DF Wayne Brown Hull City Free
1 July 2009 GK Chris Weale Bristol City Free
1 July 2009 MF Astrit Ajdarevic Liverpool Free
1 July 2009 DF Robbie Neilson Heart of Midlothian Free
7 July 2009 MF Richie Wellens Doncaster Rovers £1.2 million
21 August 2009 FW Paul Gallagher Blackburn Rovers £900k
24 August 2009 FW Yann Kermorgant Stade de Reims Free

Out
Date Pos. Nat. Name To Fee
1 July 2009 MF Joe Cobb Wycombe Wanderers Free
1 July 2009 DF Marc Edworthy Burton Albion Free
1 July 2009 MF Lee Cox Inverness Caledonian Thistle Free
1 July 2009 MF Jonny Hayes Inverness Caledonian Thistle Free
1 July 2009 MF Ryan Beswick Kettering Town Free
13 July 2009 FW Barry Hayles Cheltenham Town Free
22 July 2009 FW Billy McKay Northampton Town Free
10 August 2009 DF Joe Mattock West Bromwich Albion £1.2 million
25 January 2010 MF Max Gradel Leeds United Undisclosed
29 January 2010 FW Ricky Sappleton Macclesfield Town Free
1 February 2010 FW Paul Dickov Released Free

Loans in
Date from Date to Pos. Nat. Name From
7 August 2009 End of season FW Martyn Waghorn Sunderland F.C.
30 August 2009 End of season DF Ryan McGivern Manchester City
1 February 2009 End of season DF Alex Bruce Ipswich Town
10 March 2009 End of season FW James Vaughan Everton
23 March 2009 End of season MF Jay Spearing Liverpool

Loans out
Date from Date to Pos. Nat. Name From
1 August 2009 31 December 2009 MF Aman Verma Crewe Alexandra
4 August 2009 End of Season MF James Wesolowski Hamilton Academical
14 August 2009 End of Season MF Harry Worley Crewe Alexandra
21 August 2009 FW Ashley Chambers Wycombe Wanderers
28 August 2009 1 January 2010 FW Paul Dickov Derby County
11 September 2009 MF Levi Porter Mansfield Town
17 September 2009 FW Craig King Hereford United
11 September 2009 2 January 2010 MF Max Gradel Leeds United
26 November 2009 31 January 2010 FW DJ Campbell Derby County
15 January 2010 14 February 2010 MF Nicky Adams Leyton Orient
19 January 2010 18 February 2010 DF Luke O'Neill Tranmere Rovers
21 January 2010 End of season FW Ashley Chambers Wycombe Wanderers
1 February 2010 End of season DF Lathaniel Rowe-Turner Torquay United
1 February 2010 End of season FW DJ Campbell Blackpool
25 March 2010 End of season MF Astrit Ajdarevic Hereford United
1 February 2010 End of season MF Aman Verma Histon

Results

Football League Championship
  • Leicester City scores given first
Game Date Venue Opponents Score Scorers Attendance Points Position Report Notes
1 8 August 2009 Home Swansea City 2–1 Waghorn 69', N'Guessan 72' 26,171 3 3rd LCFC.com
2 15 August 2009 Away Ipswich Town 0–0 22,454 4 6th LCFC.com
3 18 August 2009 Away Sheffield United 1–1 Fryatt 52' 26,069 5 8th LCFC.com
4 22 August 2009 Home Barnsley 1–0 Fryatt 54' 21,799 8 5th LCFC.com
5 31 August 2009 Away Newcastle United 0–1 38,813 8 9th LCFC.com Live on Sky Sports
6 12 September 2009 Home Blackpool 2–1 Fryatt 26', 58' 22,827 11 6th LCFC.com
7 15 September 2009 Home Peterborough United 1–1 Fryatt 47 '(pen.) 21,485 12 7th LCFC.com
8 19 September 2009 Away Watford 3–3 Fryatt 20' (pen.), 40', N'Guessan 90+1' 14,647 13 9th LCFC.com
9 26 September 2009 Home Preston North End 1–2 Berner 90' 20,623 13 10th LCFC.com
10 29 September 2009 Away Middlesbrough 1–0 Dyer 83' 18,577 16 8th LCFC.com
11 4 October 2009 Away Coventry City 1–1 Waghorn 71' 22,209 17 5th LCFC.com M69 Derby
12 17 October 2009 Home Derby County 0–0 28,875 18 8th LCFC.com
13 20 October 2009 Home Crystal Palace 2–0 Gallagher 59', 81' 22,220 21 8th LCFC.com
14 26 October 2009 Away Reading 1–0 Waghorn 45' 16,192 24 5th LCFC.com Live on Sky Sports
15 30 October 2009 Away Queens Park Rangers 2–1 Fryatt 37', 64' 17,082 27 2nd LCFC.com Live on Sky Sports
16 7 November 2009 Home West Bromwich Albion 1–2 Berner 90+4' 28,748 27 6th LCFC.com
17 21 November 2009 Home Plymouth Argyle 1–0 King 90+4' 27,174 30 3rd LCFC.com
18 28 November 2009 Away Scunthorpe United 1–1 Waghorn 3' 6,884 31 3rd LCFC.com
19 5 December 2009 Away Nottingham Forest 1–5 Waghorn 64' (pen.) 28,626 31 4th LCFC.com
20 8 December 2009 Home Bristol City 1–3 Fryatt 90+3' 19,394 31 7th LCFC.com
21 12 December 2009 Home Sheffield Wednesday 3–0 Howard 8', King 25', 73' 22,236 34 4th LCFC.com
– 19 December 2009 Away Cardiff City P–P – – – Match postponed due to frozen pitch
22 26 December 2009 Home Sheffield United 2–1 Morrison 23', Fryatt 37' 23,999 37 4th LCFC.com Live on Sky Sports
– 28 December 2009 Away Doncaster Rovers P–P – – – Match postponed due to frozen pitch
23 10 January 2010 Home Ipswich Town 1–1 Howard 38' 20,758 38 5th LCFC.com Live on Sky Sports
24 16 January 2010 Away Swansea City 0–1 15,037 38 7th LCFC.com
25 26 January 2010 Away Barnsley 0–1 12,065 38 8th LCFC.com
26 30 January 2010 Home Newcastle United 0–0 29,067 39 8th LCFC.com Live on Sky Sports
27 6 February 2010 Away Blackpool 2–1 N'Guessan 15', Dyer 78' 8,484 42 6th LCFC.com
28 9 February 2010 Home Doncaster Rovers 0–0 18,928 43 6th LCFC.com
29 13 February 2010 Home Scunthorpe United 5–1 Morrison 6', Gallagher 16', 25', 73', Waghorn 34' 21,626 46 6th LCFC.com
30 16 February 2010 Away Bristol City 1–1 Dyer 90+2' 13,746 47 6th LCFC.com
31 20 February 2010 Away Plymouth Argyle 1–1 o.g. 32' 11,581 48 6th LCFC.com
32 23 February 2010 Away Doncaster Rovers 1–0 Waghorn 12' 11,027 51 5th LCFC.com
33 27 February 2010 Home Nottingham Forest 3–0 Berner 68', Gallagher 79', King 81' 31,759 54 5th LCFC.com
34 6 March 2010 Away Sheffield Wednesday 0–2 21,647 54 5th LCFC.com
35 13 March 2010 Home Cardiff City 1–0 Waghorn 29' 22,767 57 5th LCFC.com
36 17 March 2010 Away Crystal Palace 1–0 Berner 53' 12,721 60 4th LCFC.com
37 21 March 2010 Home Coventry City 2–2 King 4', 19' 23,093 61 4th LCFC.com M69 Derby, Live on BBC
38 24 March 2010 Home Reading 1–2 Waghorn 40' 20,108 61 4th LCFC.com
39 27 March 2010 Away Derby County 0–1 30,259 61 6th LCFC.com
40 30 March 2010 Away Cardiff City 1–2 Howard 52' 20,438 61 6th LCFC.com
41 2 April 2010 Away West Bromwich Albion 0–3 23,334 61 6th LCFC.com Live on Sky Sports
42 5 April 2010 Home Queens Park Rangers 4–0 King 5', Waghorn 45', 50', Howard 78' 22,079 64 6th LCFC.com
43 10 April 2010 Away Peterborough United 2–1 Howard 40', King 66' 9,651 67 5th LCFC.com
44 17 April 2010 Home Watford 4–1 Waghorn 36' (pen.), Gallagher 41', Spearing 51', Vaughan 67' 24,765 70 5th LCFC.com
45 24 April 2010 Away Preston North End 1–0 King 63' 14,926 73 5th LCFC.com
46 2 May 2010 Home Middlesbrough 2–0 Kermorgant 41', Wellens 86' (pen.) 30,223 76 5th LCFC.com

Football League Championship play-offs
  • Leicester City scores given first
  • Away goals do not count.
Round Date Venue Opponents Score Agg. Scorers Attendance Report Notes
SF1 9 May 2010 Home Cardiff City 0–1 0–1 29,165 LCFC.com Live on Sky Sports
SF2 12 May 2010 Away Cardiff City 3–2 (a.e.t.) 3–3 Fryatt 25', o.g. 36', King 49' 26,033 LCFC.com Leicester lost 3–4 on penalties. Live on Sky Sports

FA Cup
  • Leicester City scores given first
Round Date Venue Opponents Score Scorers Attendance Report Notes
3 2 January 2010 Home Swansea City 2–1 King 39', N'Guessan 89' 12,307 LCFC.com
4 23 January 2010 Away Cardiff City 2–4 Morrison 34', N'Guessan 39' 10,961 LCFC.com

League Cup
  • Leicester City scores given first
Round Date Venue Opponents Score Scorers Attendance Report Notes
1 12 August 2009 Away Macclesfield Town 2–0 N'Guessan 58', Fryatt 71' 2,197 LCFC.com
2 25 August 2009 Away Preston North End 1–2 Adams 6' 6,977 LCFC.com

Awards

Club awards

At the end of the season, Leicester's annual award ceremony including categories voted for by the players and backroom staff, the supporters and the supporters club, saw the following players recognised for their achievements for the club throughout the 2009–10 season.

Player of the Season Jack Hobbs
Young Player of the Season Martyn Waghorn
Player' Player of the Season Jack Hobbs and Andy King (joint winners)
Supporters' Club Player of the Season Jack Hobbs
Academy Player of the Season Elliott Chamberlain
Goal of the Season Paul Gallagher (vs. Nottingham Forest, 27 February 2010)

Divisional awards
Date Award Winner
February 2010 Championship Manager of the Month Nigel Pearson
February 2010 Championship Player of the Month Paul Gallagher

Championship statistics

Championship table
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion, qualification or relegation
3 Nottingham Forest 46 22 13 11 65 40 +25 79 Qualification for Championship play-offs
4 Cardiff City 46 22 10 14 73 54 +19 76
5 Leicester City 46 21 13 12 61 45 +16 76
6 Blackpool (O, P) 46 19 13 14 74 58 +16 70
7 Swansea City 46 17 18 11 40 37 +3 69
Source: The Football League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(O) Play-off winner; (P) Promoted.

Club standings
OverallHomeAway
PldWDLGFGAGDPtsWDLGFGAGDWDLGFGAGD
46 21 13 12 61 45  +16 76 13 6 4 40 18  +22 8 7 8 21 27  −6

Last updated: 24 April 2010.
Source: LCFC Championship Results

Club statistics

Appearances
No. Nat. Name FLC PO FAC LC Total
1 Chris Weale 45 2 2 2 51
2 Robbie Neilson 19 0 2 0 21
3 Ryan McGivern 9 (3) 0 0 2 11 (3)
4 Michael Morrison 30 (1) 0 2 2 34 (1)
5 Aleksander Tunchev 1 (1) 0 1 0 2 (1)
6 Wayne Brown 38 (1) 0 0 1 39 (1)
7 Max Gradel* 0 0 0 (1) 0 0 (1)
7 Nolberto Solano 6 (5) 2 0 0 8 (5)
8 Matt Oakley 37 (1) 0 2 2 41 (1)
9 Steve Howard 17 (18) 1 1 1 20 (18)
10 Andy King 37 (6) 2 1 1 41 (6)
11 Lloyd Dyer 25 (8) 2 0 (1) 1 28 (9)
12 Matty Fryatt 26 (3) 1 (1) 2 1 (1) 30 (5)
13 Conrad Logan 1 (1) 0 0 0 1 (1)
15 Bruno Berner 34 (1) 2 0 0 36 (1)
16 Nicky Adams 1 (17) 0 2 0 3 (17)
17 Dany N'Guessan 16 (11) 0 (1) 2 1 (1) 19 (13)
18 Martyn Waghorn 27 (15) 1 (1) 1 0 (1) 29 (17)
19 Richie Wellens 41 2 2 1 46
20 Luke O'Neill 0 (1) 0 1 0 1 (1)
22 Yann Kermorgant 9 (11) 0 (2) 1 (1) 0 (1) 10 (15)
23 DJ Campbell 0 (3) 0 0 0 0 (3)
24 Paul Gallagher 31 (10) 2 0 (1) 2 35 (11)
25 Jack Hobbs 44 2 1 2 49
27 Paul Dickov* 0 (1) 0 0 (1) 0 0 (2)
27 James Vaughan 2 (6) 0 0 0 2 (6)
29 Chris Powell 2 0 0 0 2
33 Alex Bruce 2 (1) 2 0 0 4 (1)
34 Jay Spearing 6 (1) 1 (1) 0 0 7 (2)

Note:

  • Substitute appearances given in brackets.
  • Asterisk indicates player left the club mid-season.

Starting XI

The following players have been named in the most starting line-ups. This line-up may differ from the list of players with most appearances.

Top scorers
Pos. Nat. Player FLC PO FAC LC Total
1 Matty Fryatt 11 1 0 1 13
2 Martyn Waghorn 12 0 0 0 12
3 Andy King 9 1 1 0 11
4 Paul Gallagher 7 0 0 0 7
5 Dany N'Guessan 3 0 2 1 6
6 Steve Howard 5 0 0 0 5
7 Bruno Berner 4 0 0 0 4
8 Michael Morrison 2 0 1 0 3
= Lloyd Dyer 3 0 0 0 3
10 Nicky Adams 0 0 0 1 1
= Jay Spearing 1 0 0 0 1
= James Vaughan 1 0 0 0 1
= Richie Wellens 1 0 0 0 1
= Yann Kermorgant 1 0 0 0 1

Most assists
Pos. Nat. Player FLC PO FAC LC Total
1 Matty Fryatt 5 0 1 0 6
= Paul Gallagher 4 1 1 0 6
3 Martyn Waghorn 4 0 1 0 5
= Richie Wellens 5 0 0 0 5
5 Matt Oakley 4 0 0 0 4
6 Dany N'Guessan 2 0 0 1 3
= Steve Howard 3 0 0 0 3
8 Bruno Berner 2 0 0 0 2
= Michael Morrison 2 0 0 0 2
10 Yann Kermorgant 0 0 1 0 1
= Andy King 1 0 0 0 1
= Lloyd Dyer 1 0 0 0 1
= James Vaughan 1 0 0 0 1
= Jay Spearing 1 0 0 0 1

Disciplinary record
Nat. Player
Richie Wellens 8 1
Martyn Waghorn 6 1
Steve Howard 6 1
Matt Oakley 7 0
Bruno Berner 7 0
Matt Oakley 7 0
Wayne Brown 5 0
Ryan McGivern 4 0
Paul Gallagher 4 0
Michael Morrison 3 0
Robbie Neilson 3 0
Lloyd Dyer 3 0
Dany N'Guessan 2 0
Jack Hobbs 2 0
Andy King 2 0
Nolberto Solano 2 0
Matty Fryatt 1 0
James Vaughan 1 0
Alex Bruce 1 0

All Stats obtained from LCFC.com

References
  1. "Player Profiles". Leicester City F.C. Archived from the original on 26 April 2011. Retrieved 28 August 2008.
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