Eldin Jakupović Has What It Takes To Become Leicester City's First Choice Goalkeeper

Eldin Jakupović Has What It Takes To Become Leicester City's First Choice Goalkeeper
10:00, 24 Jul 2017

Eldin Jakupović is joining Craig Shakespeare’s revived Leicester set-up for an easy life. Or so the perception may be. Kasper Schmeichel, as it stands, is “fully committed” to the club.  Jakupović goes in as second choice.  To be called on in the event of injury; or a League Cup match.  Schmeichel, you would have thought, is assured enough to know he is too central to the Leicester cause to be overtly concerned.

And that may be; for now.  

When Marco Silva entered the fray at the KCOM stadium in March, it looked like an impossible task to transform the sides fortunes.  Then it began to look possible.  Before one final collapse put paid to the idea of overtaking the likes of Watford or Burnley.  The former club, who Silva will lead into the new season.

Silva had hoped the Bosnian-born Swiss goalkeeper would follow him, and Jakupović was strongly linked with a move to Vicarage Road.  It wasn’t to be. But a look back on how he performed for the Portuguese former right-back, offers insight as to why Silva was quite so anxious.

Scottish international goalkeeper David Marshall was the first choice for Hull under Mike Phelan, whose season started with such self-assured performances.  No one stood in Marshall’s way when he left Cardiff for Hull, acceptance reigning that he was too good for second tier football.  In his first 15 Premier League starts, he conceded 37 goals, including an unfortunate own-goal where lack of confidence was as much a factor as poor technique.

January came, Silva came and with it Jakupović was given his opportunity. A home FA Cup tie with Swansea and two late goals from Abel Hernandez and Josh Tymon gave life to Hull’s season.  But it was their new number one who caught as much attention as the goalscorer’s; turning in a man of the match performance.

With improving performances and solidity at the back, underpinned by the stability Jakupović was giving the side, Hull looked a different prospect.  A League Cup win over Manchester United and a league win over Arsenal, saw an unlikely dash for survival.

Results were mixed, but ultimately an escape looked possible.  On April 29th, Jakupović saved a 90thminute penalty from Dusan Tadic at St Mary’s Sstadium.  The draw with Southampton a seemingly pivotal plot twist.

But then May came, and Hull were out of their depth.  By the time they faced Tottenham Hotspur on the final day of the season, they were done. Marshall was given a confidence boosting start. He conceded seven goals.

What Jakupović illustrated though as first choice, was his stability. His organisational skills and shot stopping were clear and his presence a stable one for a team that bypassed many expectations.

If Schmeichel thinks he will start the season as Leicester’s first choice; he is most certainly correct.  But Jakupović has shown he only needs one opportunity to prove his worth. And in turn, becomes irreplaceable himself.

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