Demarai Gray in full flight is quite a sight to behold. Unfortunately for Leicester City fans, it’s one they’ve not seen too often since he arrived at the club in January 2016. As he closes in on the second anniversary of his move from Birmingham City, the young winger can reflect on a challenging time with too few opportunities.
At least new manager Claude Puel seems keen to address that situation. Yesterday he made two changes from the side that beat Swansea last week, when Michael Appleton was in caretaker charge. Gray and Ben Chilwell replaced Marc Albrighton and Shinji Okazaki in the starting line-up, a bold demonstration of the new manager’s willingness to trust young English players.
The two England Under-21 internationals have been in the background for much of this season, limited to snippets of action as a stilted Leicester have trundled along unconvincingly. Against Everton they provided the team with dynamism and fresh impetus, seizing rare opportunities to show what they’re capable of.
It was Chilwell’s third league start of the season, and Gray’s second. Of his 51 top flight appearances, he has come off the bench for all but 12 of them. Initially signed as one for the future, Gray didn’t expect to be left waiting this long. There were enough brief appearances in the run-in under Claudio Ranieri to pick up a league winner’s medal but he has been inexplicably underused ever since.
With the maverick Riyad Mahrez on the other wing, the diligent but unspectacular Albrighton provided balance to the title-winning side. The desire not to disrupt this was understandable but Leicester now need to move on. Many have long called for Gray to be given an extended run in the team and he made a compelling case with yesterday’s match-winning contribution.
Quick, skilful and direct, he strode forward confidently with the ball whenever he received it and looked to commit defenders. An early long-range effort was dragged just wide in a warning that Everton failed to heed. On the breakaway Gray showed blistering pace to cover the length of the pitch and the presence of mind to play in Mahrez, who set up Jamie Vardy for a deceptively simple opener.
He claimed the second of the game shortly after, teasing Tom Davies down the left and then cutting inside on his favoured foot to shoot. Jonjoe Kenny helped the ball on its way into the net with a wild slice but the goal was credited to Gray. His fourth for Leicester, he would have hoped for more. Hopefully this can be the catalyst.
#LEIEVE
A sometimes erratic finisher in his Birmingham days he did grab a hat-trick against Reading courtesy of some sharp footwork and a touch of composure as he closed in on goal. There was a glimpse of that same ability in an impressive solo goal he scored against Derby County in the FA Cup. Jinking between tackles and desperate defenders he engineered the space to find the top corner.
A constant threat for England Under-21s and versatile enough to play on either wing or behind the striker, he should thrive in the right environment. Joining the Foxes seemed a sensible decision at the time, as despite interest from Liverpool and Tottenham amongst others, Gray was keen not to end up aimlessly drifting on the peripheries.
He expected to feature far more regularly last year and there were even talks of moving on over the summer after an unsettled start to his Premier League career. Gray stayed put and will be grateful that Claude Puel saw enough in his first two training sessions to put him straight into the team. He deservedly won the man of the match award and must go on to prove that this productive afternoon wasn’t a one-off.
