Leicester City have looked back to their best over the last two games and that has coincided with the return of one key player.
The Foxes left it late to defeat Birmingham City at King Power Stadium on Saturday, as Stephy Mavididi netted an 87th-minute winner.
Victory for Enzo Maresca‘s side moved them to the summit of the Championship table and they are now well-placed to make an instant return to the Premier League.
City reside one point clear of Ipswich Town and two of Leeds United, both of whom have played a game more.
After a shakey few weeks, which saw them drop out of the top two, Leicester have looked much better in the last two fixtures and are now hitting full stride just at the right time.
Their improved form has coincided, interestingly, with the return of Ricardo Pereira.
Ricardo Pereira brilliant stats v Birmingham City
Pereira was sidelined due to injury for three games in March and City only picked up four points from those.
Further, in the defeat to Bristol City at the end of last month, he didn’t start and only came on for 12 minutes as a substitute.
Since returning to the first 11, Maresca’s side have secured back-to-back victories against Norwich City and Birmingham City, which evinces just how important he is.
On Saturday, Pereira had a whopping 114 touches and maintained an exemplary 93 per cent pass completion rate, according to Sofascore.
He also laid on two key passes, so on another day, he may well have registered on assist to add to his current total of three.
It wasn’t only his attacking contribution that was impressive but the all-action defender also managed five interceptions, one tackle and one block.
Ricardo Pereira more important than Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
It’s a close one, and no knock on Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall by any means, but Pereira in recent weeks has proved to be Maresca’s important player.
Leicester wouldn’t be top of the league without Dewsbury-Hall’s goals and assists, so it’s perhaps a little unfair to adjudge him in this way.
Notwithstanding that, Pereira’s absence in recent weeks has amplified just how integral he is to the system.
Playing in the inverted right-back role, the 30-year-old is a crucial cog in how City build out from the back and certain patterns of play with his midfield partner Harry Winks.
Further, his tenacity and defensive know-how when out of possession is second to none in the squad, barring maybe Wout Faes.
Since returning from the treatment table, Leicester have looked so much more solid defensively and that is partly due to how many interceptions Pereira is able to make.
The seven-cap Portugal international is without doubt one of the best players in the Championship and Leicester are so fortunate to have a player of his calibre at this level.
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