Twenty seconds after fan favourite, Anthony Knockaert had his debateable penalty saved at one end, Troy Deeney thumped in a goal that took Watford to the play-off final at the expensive of Leicester City.
It was a cruel end to the season where Leicester City unfortunately missed out on the play-off final, in almost unbelievable scenes. Leicester suffered a remarkable decline in form which saw them win only three times in their last 18 games. This was after they found themselves in an automatic promotion position back in February. With a strong squad LCFC will be eager to build on where they left off last season and will almost certainly be one of the favourites to earn promotion.
Manager, Nigel Pearson will be keen to add a few additions to his squad ready for the up coming season. However, the foxes are still yet to move in the transfer market. Pearson's side are yet to make a single transaction, in or out of the club.
Only the imminent transfer of striker Jermaine Beckford to Bolton looks likely to happen any time soon. The former Leeds and Everton striker , 29 is set to complete his move to the Trotters for a reported £1m fee.
I believe that Leicester need to perform a dramatic shake up at the club, shifting on several fringe players using up the wage bill as well as adding some new talent and experience. The right choices in the transfer market could see LCFC playing in England's top flight once again.
With the departure of big earner, Beckford looming, I would suggest that also moving on Zak Whitbread, Wellens and Gallagher would be positive steps. Whitbread often looked off the pace and did not always appear match fit, this was shown in abundance when Man Utd loanee, Michael Keane arrived, who for was a fantastic acquisition, a defender that looked to be of the same ball playing mould as United team mate, Rio Ferdinand. Wellens' work rate is certainly something that can not be knocked, but his passing distribution and goal return is often poor and I do not believe he is the type of player that a team challenging for the Championship title require. I have always though of Gallagher as a very poor mans David Beckham. Gallagher is often far too lightweight and weak on the ball and although he does display some great technical abilities he is not nearly consistent enough and often goes missing, especially in bigger and more physical games. Another player I'm sure LCFC fans won't mind seeing the back of is Jamie Vardy who after signing for £1m from non-league side Fleetwood Town. Along with Vardy, forgotten striker Marko Futacs should be shown the exit door, which would free up the wage bill somewhat.
I would be looking at further departures such Waghorn, Danns and St Ledger if required. Although the three would bring the wage bill down somewhat, I do believe that they could become useful squad rotation players in the gruelling slog of the Championship schedule.
As far as recruitments coming into the squad are concerned, I would waste no time in bringing in a couple of new strikers. The first of which would be Southampton's Billy Sharp. Sharp is a proven goal scorer in the Championship who would require only a small fee or wages if a loan deal could be struck up. The Southampton striker appears to be surplus to requirements at St Mary's. In my opinion Sharp has a similar playing style to Nugent, and rotation of the two could prove to be effective if both can find the net constantly. As well as Sharp, I would be targeting Burnley's Charlie Austin, who had a very impressive season last year. Austin, who found the net 28 times for his club last season is being monitored by Premier League new boys Hull, would require a fee of around £4m, and his goal return would make this more than worth the investment. A cheaper alternative up front would be Wolverhampton' Sylvan Ebank-Blake who still found the net 14 times in the League despite being relegated with his club.
If Pearson would prefer to look at a bigger, target man type striker, I would look no further than free agent Kevin Davies, who I believe would provide good cover for Chris Wood as well as vast experience. The former Bolton captain would also be a good head in the dressing room.
LCFC also found themselves a real steal in Anthony Knockaert. The midfielder has fast become one of the hottest prospects in the division. I think a good addition to the foxes midfield would be Millwall's Liam Trotter. Who is a fresher alternative to Danny Drinkwater and to Richie Wellens. Along side Matty James, I think the two could form a formidable midfielder partnership. I see Matty James and a bit of an unsung hero and Leicester and think his performances go unnoticed. It is no coincidence that his absence due to injury and LCFC's dip in form went hand in hand.
Failing bringing back Keane on loan in central defence, I would be looking at another free agent, in former England International Matt Upson. Upson has been hotly tipped to return to Brighton where he spent the end of the season on loan from Stoke. Upson was mature and confident in Brighton's heart of defence and was a very solid signing for them. Upson is the type of player that can still compete at the high end of the Championship and even the lower end of the Premier League. I believe he would be very good partner alongside club captain Wes Morgan.
Another experienced free agent worth looking at is Aston Villas, Richard Dunne. A central defender who always leaves everything on the pitch would bring immense experience to LCFC's defence. However something they may be cause for concern is Dunne's fitness, having been out with injury for a long time. Should he stay fit however he could become a useful squad addition.
A few loan signings are always vital for any Championship club and can prove to very successful. I would be looking at the potential loan signings of Ricardo Vaz Te from West Ham United, who enjoyed a great campaign on his last outing in the Championship as well as looking at Southampton's Guly Do Prado who also enjoyed a similar season when in the Championship. Both would bring in pace and flair along with goals and would work really well either side of Chris Wood and provide cover for fellow forwards Knockaert and Lloyd Dyer
My potential line up would see Leicester City kicking off against Middlesbrough looking like this:
Schemical
De Leat Morgan Upson Konchesky
Trotter James
Vaz Te Knockaert Do Prado
Austin
Leicester have all the foundations ready to challenge for promotion once again. And a few more investments could see them playing top flight football in 2014/15. Whether or not Nigel Pearson will bring in any signings is yet to be confirmed. The foxes are not far away from being a top, top Championship side for can really challenge.
46 games await...It's going to be another long season...
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