JibrinGary Rowett confesses Leicester City’s two-month winless streak is creating issues after Ipswich draw
Leicester City made it three points from four matches under Gary Rowett with a 1-1 draw at Ipswich, but it was another game in which they failed to hold onto an advantage.
Leicester City must learn to handle their anxiety and not allow opponents to overrun them in order to turn their draws into victories, Gary Rowett stated after a share of the spoils at Ipswich.
A 1-1 stalemate at Portman Road means City have taken a point from each of their three away fixtures under new boss Gary Rowett.
While they may be valuable in the fight for Championship survival, it means the winless run has now stretched to 10 games, with City having surrendered the lead in each of those encounters.
On Saturday, City led through Patson Daka’s volley just before the interval, with Sindre Walle Egeli equalising for the hosts late on, sparking a frantic finale that Rowett’s side barely survived.
Explaining how City allowed Ipswich to seize control in the second half, Rowett suggested nerves may be an issue, with the wait for a victory now standing at two months.
“First half, I thought our shape was excellent,” Rowett said. “I thought we got into some brilliant positions and maybe should have done better.
“I liked the look of us first half. I thought we looked composed as a football team. To go a goal ahead with a well-worked set-piece, going in at half-time we were really pleased.
“Second half, you know they’re going to push. They score a lot of late goals, Ipswich. They’re a demanding team to play against. They play with an incredible energy and are really well coached.
“We were backed up and didn’t use the ball well enough. Maybe there was a little bit of nervousness because we haven’t won a game for a while. Maybe the players are trying to overprotect that. That’s something we need to work on.
“It was disappointing to concede but I can’t complain that Ipswich didn’t deserve something from the game for their efforts. I’m pleased we defended the box when we needed to late on.”
Rowett also suggested that City may be expending energy in being aggressive off the ball that’s preventing them from using it adequately when they do regain possession.
“We needed to use the ball better in the second half,” Rowett said. “Sometimes you’re happy to put your foot through it.
“There were a couple of times where we cleared our lines, it goes out for a throw-in, and we’re still sat in our own half waiting for them to throw it and come back to us.
“Sometimes, you’ve got to squeeze up, try to lock them in and have some pressure there. There were a couple of times where we turned the ball over too cheaply.
“Maybe because we’re working so hard out of possession to do what we want to do, maybe we didn’t quite have the energy late on in the game to then go and play. But sometimes we just gave the ball away. That’s something we definitely need to improve.
“I don’t think there will be many teams that come to Ipswich, be 1-0 up, and not have to defend really stoically. I don’t think we’re any different.
“What we’ve got to do is build on moments and be better in controlling how the second half looks, rather than letting the opposition control how it looks.”
Jibrin
