A decade ago in September 2016, Leicester City were getting ready to play in the Champions League.
Now? They sit 17th in League One, the lowest position in the club’s history since they entered the Football League in 1894.
Russell Martin has led the Foxes to just one win in their first five games, and on Saturday they were battered 4-0 at home by Oxford United.
Leicester fans were chanting ‘you’re getting sacked in the morning’ at Martin at the King Power Stadium, who would have been desperate for a good start to turn his reputation around after a dismal end to his time at Southampton, and then a gruelling spell at Rangers.
But can he turn it around? Former Leicester City assistant manager Michael Appleton believes he can.
“It’s a difficult moment, there’s no doubt about it,” Appleton told The EFL Show on Sky Sports News.
“Russell Martin is a very experienced guy now. It was always going to be a difficult job, with big expectations from a club that not too long ago was playing in the Premier League and winning the Premier League.
“With those expectations, you’ve got to deliver. It’s still very early, but losing 4-0 at home, along with the results against Plymouth and Burton, makes it a very difficult start. They’ve got to start winning games very quickly to address it.
“What I would say is that he’s got experience. He’s been here before, at a big club with expectations in the league they were in, and he didn’t get off to the start he wanted.
“He’ll draw on those experiences and maybe use them behind the scenes with the players and staff, speaking about how they dealt with those situations and trying to keep everyone calm.
“It’s still very early and there are some good games coming up for them. I always say that when you’re in a difficult moment and you’re losing games, it feels much worse when you’re at home. I’m not saying losing 4-0 at Oxford would have been a good result in any stretch of the imagination, but when it happens at home, it feels so much worse.
“There’s a big expectation to deal with, but I think he’s more than comfortable doing it.”
Meanwhile, Reading co-CEO Joe Jacobson believes the inexperience in the squad is hurting their progress this season.
“They’ve got a really young team at the minute,” he said. “You look at the players they’re bringing off the bench and they’re taking off experienced players and bringing on younger ones.
“It’s difficult for those young players, who will feel the pressure and feel the atmosphere in the stadium. The fans are waiting to turn because of what’s happened over the last couple of years. It takes a long time for a fan base to turn and get right behind their team again.
“They have a really tough job on their hands and Russell Martin will know that. He knows exactly what he wants to do and how he wants his team to play. Sometimes that causes division within the fan base, but I’m sure he’ll be knuckling down on exactly what he wants to do with his team.
“It reminds me of when he was at Southampton. They lost four games in a row in September and then didn’t lose a league match until February. If he can turn the ship, he might start to get a tune out of some of those players.”
Jacobson also feels that the disconnect between the club and the fans is also causing an issue, especially since the owners announced Leicester was up for sale, having had a similar recent experience at Reading.
“It’s been difficult at Reading because of what happened previously with the ownership there. We’ve felt it as well. It has taken a long time to get the fans to buy into what you want to do, and the ownership have done amazing things there over the years,” he added.
“But when they recently came out and talked about wanting to sell the club and actively looking for a buyer, straight away the fans almost say, ‘Well, you don’t care now. You just want out. That’s your main focus.’
“If the ownership are openly saying they want to sell, it’s really difficult for the fans to buy into that. But I still think they’re going to have a really successful season.
“Once these players get time on the training field with the manager, I’m sure they’ll come good. At the minute, there’s that anxiousness and a divided fan base. They want to support their club, but they also want to feel that everyone is pulling in the right direction.”
Next up for Martin and Leicester is a trip to Stockport County on Saturday, who are currently sat third in League One.
A decade ago, the Hatters were in National League North. Now they welcome the Foxes to Edgeley Park as favourites for victory.
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