JibrinOliver Skipp is the most expensive player recruited by Leicester City over the past four summer transfer windows and it feels the figure attached to his name – £20m, rising to £25m – can influence how his performances are judged from the outside.
But for the 25-year-old midfielder, the fee is irrelevant. Whatever the price-tag, the expectation it brings would pale in comparison to the demands he places on himself.
Skipp acknowledges that his first year and a half at City has been far from ideal. But, individually at least, there has been progress over the past few months.
Standout displays are being produced more regularly, not least on Tuesday night, when Skipp’s protection of the defence, plus progressive passes and surging runs on the ball, played a significant part in City beating Bristol City to end their long wait for a victory and a clean sheet.
“There’s always expectation, especially if you do go for a significant amount of money,” Skipp told LeicestershireLive.
“But there’s always pressure internally that I put on myself. I don’t think anyone from outside would put as many demands on me as I do myself.
“It was the club’s decision to pay it. There’s no added pressure. There’s expectation but no more than what I’d put on myself.
“I don’t think anyone could argue the 18 months have been tough for the club and for the players personally. But you always know that if you keep doing the right things, and working hard, the rewards will come at some point.”
There are few who could accuse Skipp of not working hard. Amid allegations from fans of players not caring and not trying, Skipp’s performances mean he has avoided such criticism, despite him being a regular. Only Abdul Fatawu, Luke Thomas and Jakub Stolarczyk have played more minutes this season.
The victory away at Derby in early December felt significant in perhaps shifting the supporter perception of Skipp. He produced a man-of-the match display and scored his first goal for the club. The celebrations showed how delighted his team-mates were for him.
“It’s always nice when teammates are happy for any player,” he said. “Because you do spend so much time with people in this building, you do create those connections and those bonds.”
He added: “There’s been ups and downs. It’s been nice to get a significant run of games. I’ve always maintained that that’s when I get the best out of myself. So that’s been nice.
“But I don’t think you’ll find any player at the club who’s particularly happy with how the team and individually they’ve performed.”
With the team not performing to the expected standard, City find themselves in the thick of a relegation scrap and bidding to avoid dropping into the third tier.
New manager Gary Rowett looks to have got them heading in the right direction, especially following the win over Bristol City. There’s now nine more games to continue along that path.
It’s a chance to tweak the story of the season, but nothing more than that, Skipp believes. No matter how well these next nine matches go, and no matter if City stay up, this is not a campaign to be satisfied with.
“He [Rowett] has kept things really clear to the players,” Skipp said. “The players go onto the pitch with a clear idea of what they need to be doing and not overcomplicating things.
“He’s given ownership to the players as well, especially the forward players. He’s always encouraging them to take risks and to be attacking and to show their qualities.
“It’s up to the defensive players to keep us more solid and keep the clean sheets we’ve been waiting for for ages.
“But there’s no hiding away that it’s been disappointing. It’s up to us to slightly change the narrative in the last nine games while realising that this wasn’t the ambition at the start of the season.”
If City do stay up, they will get a fresh chance to truly change the narrative next season. Skipp will likely be at the heart of that, striving to produce many more displays like Tuesday night’s.
Jibrin
